F1 Mid Season Review

Can you believe it, we are already half way through the 2013 season, time has certainly flown by, and so much has happened already this year. For this special feature I'm going to analyse the teams and the drivers through the first part of the season, and score them on results. My performance scores will be based on consistency, results and progression.

Red Bull Racing
Red Bull started the season in steady fashion at Melbourne finishing 3rd and 6th, but by round 2 in Malaysia, they were back to their best securing 1st and 2nd in a dominant, but controversial performance which got many people talking about team orders once again. In China, Bahrain and Spain they only managed 1 victory, and Mark Webber was struggling retiring from the Chinese Grand Prix and unable to beat teammate Sebastian Vettel in all but the British Grand Prix. It has been a season of mixed fortunes for Red Bull so far, team rivalry and tactics has been the talking point throughout. They are fast, but they are not the unbeatable team they have been in the past, Vettel may well be ahead in the title race, but it is still all to play for.
Championship standings: Red Bull 01 (250pts) – S.Vettel 01 (157pts) – M.Webber 05 (93pts)
Performance score for Red Bull. 8 / 10

Mercedes
Mercedes started the 2013 season at a steady but improving pace. Lewis Hamilton was quickly out performing teammate Nico Rosberg, it was an impressive start for the British driver after his move from McLaren. The pace of the car was good, but from the Spanish Grand Prix it was right up there with Red Bull. Qualifying performances have been exceptional in the last few races, but now the cars race pace has also improved. Many would put it down to a certain tyre test, I put it down to a solid and highly experienced team. Rosberg has won 2 races this year in Monaco and Great Britain, but Lewis Hamilton was unlucky not to win his home race after a tyre failure destroyed his chance. New tyres from Hungary however could mean Mercedes dropping way back in performance, and starting from zero.
Championship standings: Mercedes 02 (183pts) – L.Hamilton 04 (99pts) – N.Rosberg 06 (84pts)
Performance score for Mercedes. 8 / 10

Ferrari
Ferrari started the season well back in Melbourne securing 2nd and 4th, they were on the pace and looked strong from the off, however there was hint of inconsistency in results. In Malaysia Felipe Massa finished 5th while Fernando Alonso didn't finish the race after losing his front wing from contact at turn 1. In China Alonso won convincingly but at the Race in Bahrain the team suffered another poor result. There was another win for Alonso at his home Grand Prix in Spain, but then in Monaco it was once again a poor performance. Races in Canada, Britain and Germany proved more consistent, but Ferrari really do need to progress forward if they are to be a part of the title fight.
Championship Standings: Ferrari 03 (180pts) – F.Alonso 02 (123pts) – F.Massa 07 (57pts)
Performance score for Ferrari. 6 / 10

Lotus
Team Lotus had the best start to the season with Kimi Raikkonen taking victory in Australia, the Enstone based team had a quick package from the off. There was a string of strong performances throughout the start of the year, Raikkonen was undoubtedly the faster and more consistent driver. Romain Grosjean however was struggling to match his more experienced teammate, there has once again been too many incidents for the Frenchman. The speed of Grosjean is excellent when he's on form, but he's only been able to match the flying Finn on two occasions so far this year in Malaysia and Germany. Monaco was perhaps the low point for Romain as he crashed three times throughout the weekend. At the Nurburgring last time out, Lotus matched Red Bull on pace which is quite remarkable, it's looking promising for the team providing they can keep this performance going.
Championship standings: Lotus 04 (157pts) – K.Raikkonen 03 (116pts) – R.Grosjean 08 (41pts)
Performance score for Lotus. 8 / 10

Force India
Impressive is the word to describe Force India so far this year, they have been a solid team and very consistent throughout the season so far. It hasn't been completely perfect however, some mistakes in Qualifying and occasionally slow pit stops have actually cost the team potential podium positions. Paul Di Resta has out performed teammate Adrian Sutil on a number of occasions so far, but the team's low point came in Malaysia where both drivers failed to finish the race. They are a force to be reckoned with, out performing McLaren on the track and in the championship. They are genuinely quick and showing huge potential, as long as they keep progressing as they are now and stop the errors particularly in Qualifying, they could well finish higher up in the constructors championship. Force India are a team to keep your eye on for the rest of the 2013 season.
Championship standings: Force India 05 (59pts) – P.DiResta 09 (36pts) – A.Sutil 11 (23pts)
Performance score for Force India. 9 / 10

McLaren
I have to say it's sad to report one of the top and most historic teams are having a hard time. The Woking based outfit have struggled from the off, no pace, poor performance and numerous errors. They took a risk with the design of the MP4-28, one that clearly hasn't paid off. Their highest finishing position so far in 2013 is 6th, Jenson Button and Sergio Perez have been struggling with the car in race trim. However the young Mexican has been putting the manners on Button on several occasions, most memorably in Bahrain where they had a terrific battle together. These are good moments for the team I believe as it shows both drivers are determined to push hard with each other, but the fact remains the car just isn’t good enough. Team principle Martin Whitmarsh has admitted from August they will be focussing all resources on the 2014 car. Disappointing maybe, but it makes complete sense.
Championship standings: McLaren 06 (49pts) – J.Button 10 (33pts) – S.Perez 12 (16pts)
Performance score for McLaren. 4 / 10

Toro Rosso
Toro Rosso have been relatively impressive so far this season, particularly towards the latter stages of this first half of the year. Young Australian Daniel Ricciardo has had the measure of teammate Jean Eric Vergne on most occasions despite being just behind in the championship, perhaps a vacant Red Bull seat is playing on the mind. The team have scored points pretty consistently too. I sense just a little more pace from the car with various upgrades, they are already pestering McLaren on race weekends, and they could go further. You cannot count them out of the top ten very often, they are almost always in the mix. It is race pace that needs a little improvement and they could well be right up there. The team have always shown improvement, I think this year will show just what they are made of. I think Jean Eric Vergne needs to focus a little more on his qualifying performances too, he often makes up positions in the race. There appears to be a good atmosphere within the team which will undoubtedly help them.
Championship standings: Toro Rosso 07 (24pts) – J.E.Vergne 13 (13pts) – D.Ricciardo 14 (11pts)
Performance score for Toro Rosso. 7 / 10

Sauber
It's difficult to know where to start with Sauber. Disappointing is an understatement for the struggling Swiss team. After a strong and impressive season last year, Nico Hulkenberg jumped from Force India. What a mistake that has proved to be, the frustration must be horrendous. The car is slow and difficult to drive with poor balance. Hulkenberg has made the points on occasions, but only just. So what can the team do to improve the car? To be honest it's almost impossible as they are playing catch up from a long way behind. They were in financial difficulties and Hulkenberg ended his contract with them after not being paid for some time. It was announced that suppliers had also not been paid. Esteban Gutierrez has shown his good driving ability on a couple of occasions, but nothing that was outstanding. But on Monday the announcement was made that the team have secured a partnership with three Russian institutions, which appears to have secured the teams future.
Championship standings: Sauber 08 (7pts) – N.Hulkenberg 15 (7pts) – E.Gutierrez 18 (0pts)
Performance score for Sauber. 3 / 10

Williams
It is sad to see one of the most historic and successful F1 teams struggling, Williams have been stuck in a rut for some time. Clare Williams is now team principle taking over the role from her father Sir Frank Williams. She is very clear that the team will improve over time, and having watched them very closely at Silverstone this year I can see small improvements. It will take time, possibly a few seasons but they will return to their former glory I am convinced. Rookie driver Valtteri Bottas has been enormously impressive this season consistently out performing more experienced teammate Pastor Maldonado. In all but 2 races so far he has finished higher than he qualified, he has also completed every race. In Canada he shocked everyone by qualifying in 3rd. Teammate Maldonado on the other hand has retired in 3 races and only completed 4 races higher than he qualified.
Championship standings: Williams 09 (0pts) – P.Maldonado 16 (0pts) – V.Bottas 17 (0pts)
Performance score for Williams. 4 / 10

Marussia
Marussia started the season relatively well and were just ahead of main rivals Caterham. Being at the back of the grid means it isn't easy to make an impression, but Jules Bianchi did make an impression, a good one too. In 7 of the 9 races so far this season, Bianchi has beaten teammate Max Chilton. He's also finished higher than he qualified in 6 races so far and has shown excellent pace and race craft while being towards the back, he is most certainty a driver to watch out for. Max Chilton on the other hand, I just can't see him making it big in F1. He's often a second or so slower than his teammate, and I've not seen anything special from him at all. But I think Marussia actually have a pretty good car, it's capable of finishing higher in the race than qualifying positions. Progression for the rest of the season will be critical if they are to remain ahead of Caterham.
Championship standings: Marussia 10 (0pts) – J.Bianchi 19 (0pts) – M.Chilton 21 (0pts)
Performance score for Marussia. 4 / 10

Caterham
Finally we turn to Caterham, a team who have been struggling all season long. Giedo Van Der Garde was late to F1 as this is his rookie year at the age of 28. It has to be said, the Dutchman hasn't lived up to expectation and is in grave danger of being replaced by Heikki Kovalinen. Charles Pic has been quite the reverse, he's finished higher than his qualifying in all but 2 races so far this year. The Frenchman has real racing potential, he's a good driver who has got all the performance out of the car. Marussia are their main rivals, Pic has been right in the mix out performing Max Chilton on most occasions. The team must focus on results if they are to challenge Marussia, if Kovalinen does replace Van Der Garde, results will most likely improve. Plus the Finn's experience will prove invaluable to help develop and improve the car.
Championship standings: Caterham 11 (0pts) – C.Pic 20 (0pts) – G.v.d.Garde 22 (0pts)
Performance score for Caterham. 3 / 10

That concludes my team talk for the first half of this season, it has been a dramatic and exciting year so far, it promises to continue throughout 2013. You can keep up to date with all the latest F1 news right here at Driving For Pleasure

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The Hungarian Grand Prix weekend starts on July 26th, you can read my weekend preview here in our F1 Live section

Photos by Kevin Bennett @Bennett_Kevin

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