F1 2015 preview: Advantage Hamilton in dominant Mercedes

FORMULA ONE 2015

MERCEDES + RED BULL + WILLIAMS + FERRARI + MCLAREN + FORCE INDIA + TORO ROSSO + LOTUS + MANOR MARUSSIA + SAUBER

MERCEDES 

	F1 W06 Hybrid	GPs	Pole	Wins
44	Lewis HAMILTON (Gbr)	148	38	33 (2 championships)
6	Nico ROBSERG (Ger)	166	15	8

Dominant Mercedes remain well clear of the field which can only be good news for defending champion Lewis Hamilton. The Briton won his second world title in November, six years after his first, and this season is a wonderful opportunity for him to ensure he does not have to wait quite as long between championships again. 
A third crown for Hamilton would put him level with his idol, the late Ayrton Senna - and, having seen off team-mate Nico Rosberg with a brilliant surge of form in the second of last season, the biggest danger to the Stevenage-born champ might just be himself.
After all, Hamilton's off-season has once again been dominated by stories about his personal life, most notably his split with his management team, Simon Fuller’s XIX Entertainment, and his latest break-up with pop-star Nicole Scherzinger. The last time Hamilton had the potential to be so distracted by external events, in 2011, he suffered his worst season in F1 - and, while the Englishman insists he is a lot more mature now, the door is open for Rosberg to exert pressure. 
Certainly, it feels as if the German needs a good start this year to heal the wounds of giving up such a strong position in the autumn of last year. Indeed, Rosberg's early-season form will surely determine just how competitive the Drivers' Championship actually is.  

RED BULL-RENAULT

	RB11	GPs	Pole	Wins
3	Daniel RICCIARDO (Aus)	69	0	3
26	Daniil KVYAT (Rus)	19	0	0

Coming just a year after joining the team as Sebastian Vettel's second-in-command, Australian Daniel Ricciardo is now the undoubted number one driver at Red Bull Racing. It is a fully merited position for the way Ricciardo thoroughly out-raced four-time world champion Vettel with the German consequently seeking refuge at Ferrari, one year short of completing his contract.
Joining Ricciardo instead is highly-rated 20-year-old Russian Daniil Kvyat who impressed so much in his rookie season with sister team Toro Rosso that he got the big call from Christian Horner. Now, of course, Ricciardo is the hunted, more experienced driver - but, while Vettel seemed quick to find faults when things were not going his way, the Aussie's laid-back personality should stand him in good stead for another season in which any Grand Prix wins will again come against the odds. For Kvyat, the move might have come a little too early - though you never quite know and his record against Ricciardo will provide a source of early-season fascination. 

WILLIAMS-MERCEDES 

	FW37	GPs	Pole	Wins
19	Felipe MASSA (Brz)	212	16	11
77	Valtteri BOTTAS (Fin)	38	0	0

Williams enjoyed their finest season for many a year in the last campaign, deservedly taking third place in the Constructors' Championship ahead of Ferrari and McLaren. 
The Grove-based team finished on a particular high as Felipe Massa - seventh in the Drivers' standings - and Valtteri Bottas - fourth - gave the team a first double podium since Nick Heidfeld and Mark Webber finished second and third at Monaco in 2005. As a result, it was no surprise to see this talented partnership retained for 2015.
But one thing that will irk Bottas in particular, given his six podium finishes last season, was the lack of a Grand Prix victory - and so Williams might even be prepared to accept a greater level of inconsistency if their points total happened to feature a first race win since Pastor Maldonado's rather random success in 2012, and only a second since 2004.

FERRARI 

	SF15-T	GPs	Pole	Wins
5	Sebastian VETTEL (Ger)	139	45	39 (4 championships)
7	Kimi RAIKKONEN (Fin)	213	16	20 (1 championship)

Flailing Ferrari have brought four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel on board in a bid to restore former glories - but, despite his quadruple between 2010 and 2013, the German himself also needs to fix his reputation somewhat. After all, Vettel only joined the Italian giants for the 2015 season having been shocked to find Daniel Ricciardo not to be quite as acquiescent a team-mate as fellow Australian Mark Webber.
At least Vettel should have the beating of his new team-mate Kimi Raikkonen if last year is anything to go by. The Finn's best moments came from his often amusing radio communication with the team as, on the track, he totally failed to live anywhere near up to a reputation mainly built on him being a former Ferrari world champion in his first spell at Maranello.
In fairness to Ferrari, testing has gone better than expected and there has been some much-needed change at the top of the organisation. New president Sergio Marchionne has brought in a new team principal - with Maurizio Arrivabene arriving to replace the sacked Marco Mattiacci. Nevertheless, the team's ambitions are as modest as they ever have been - and the stated target of two race wins hardly inspiring stuff for the Tifosi.

MCLAREN-HONDA 

	MP4-30	GPs	Pole	Wins
14	Fernando ALONSO (Esp)	236	22	32 (2 championships)
22	Jenson BUTTON (Gbr)	268	8	15 (1 championship)
20	Kevin MAGNUSSEN (Den)	19	0	0

Off the pace until at least May, it would be fair to say that last season's woes for McLaren have continued into this year despite (or perhaps because of) a change in engine supplier to Honda. 
Stalwart Jenson Button has even admitted the Woking outfit could be right at the back of the grid for this weekend's season opener in Melbourne if struggling new boys Manor Marussia do not run. Such an outcome would be a shame for the Frome flyer, a well-liked character and the most experienced driver in the paddock, who only just saved his seat in the sport before Christmas after some last ditch negotiating.
Eventually, once McLaren get going, the Briton will be joined by Spaniard Fernando Alonso following his surprise move to reacquaint himself with a team he left under a cloud in 2007. His second debut will not happen just yet, though, as Alonso has been ruled out of the Australian Grand Prix following a high-speed collision in testing. It actually turned into a rather odd incident with conflicting reports over the extent of the injury and, even now, there remain a few unanswered questions.
Genuine mystery also surrounds the reason behind Alonso's return to McLaren, described rather cynically in some quarters as a marriage of convenience. After all, even if the two-time world champion had become frustrated with so regularly outperforming Ferrari, he has effectively swapped one team struggling to live up to its glorious reputation for another currently doing even worse. Alonso and McLaren is definitely a relationship worth watching.

FORCE INDIA-MERCEDES 

	VJM08	GPs	Pole	Wins
11	Sergio PEREZ (Mex)	77	0	0
27	Nico HULKENBERG (Ger)	77	1	0

Moored in mid-table since 2008, it is difficult to know what Force India can do to improve their fortunes. They have the strongest engine in Mercedes and a decent driver line-up has been retained - but, while they challenged McLaren for fifth throughout the whole of 2014, two double retirements in Hungary and United States ultimately left the Silverstone-based outfit in sixth place for the third time in four years.
Yet more ups and downs can be expected in the next eight-and-a-half months with the best efforts of Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg restricted by an increasingly parlous financial situation. Perez, in particular, is capable of a searing lap which can propel him up the grid, while Hulkenberg was a consistent points scorer throughout the whole of the last campaign, missing out only on four occasions.  

TORO ROSSO-RENAULT 

	STR10	GPs	Pole	Wins
33	Max VERSTAPPEN (Net)	0	0	0
55	Carlos SAINZ Jr (Esp)	0	0	0

Red Bull's sister team Toro Rosso have taken their much-vaunted youth policy to extremes this winter with 17-year-old Dutchman Max Verstappen hitting the headlines after becoming the youngest ever Formula One driver. Undoubtedly talented, Verstappen won six successive races in the Formula Three championship on his way to finishing third in the series overall last season.
But, frankly, Formula One is another level of pressure again - and, as BBC writer Andrew Benson points out, the Red Bull talent stream is a cut-throat business with many decent drivers failing to make the grade. Nevertheless, others - such as Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo and, most recently, Daniil Kvyat - have thrived, and Verstappen will be determined to add his name to that still-fledgling list. 
Verstappen's team-mate, Carlos Sainz Jr, was initially overlooked in the Dutchman's favour - and only won a seat when Kvyat was promoted to the main Red Bull team. Such an occurrence was hardly a vote of confidence in the Spaniard who - while being only 20 years old himself - could do with some strong early performances to quieten the hype surrounding his teenage colleague.

LOTUS-MERCEDES 

	E23 Hybrid	GPs	Pole	Wins
8	Romain GROSJEAN (Fra)	64	0	0
13	Pastor MALDONADO (Ven)	77	1	1

Having dropped back from fourth place in the Constructors' Championship in 2012 and 2013 to eighth last year, Lotus should return to a more competitive mid-table placing this time following their switch to Mercedes engines.
It could perhaps be higher than mid-table - but such a result would rely on the most crash-happy pair in F1 cleaning up their act. Actually, that is perhaps not too fair on Romain Grosjean who got much better at keeping his nose out of trouble, especially in the second half of last season. 
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about team-mate Pastor Maldonado who even has a website dedicated to his scrapes. Indeed, in many ways, it was quite refreshing to hear that the Venezuelan had crashed out of the final pre-season test at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona. Clearly, the start of the new season was not far away.

MANOR MARUSSIA-FERRARI 

	MR03	GPs	Pole	Wins
28	Will STEVENS (Gbr)	1	0	0
98	Roberto MERHI (Esp)	0	0	0

The fact that the Marussia name lives on at all in Formula One is a testament to the efforts of everyone at Manor Motorsport and others who were not prepared to allow the team to die without a fight. Considering they were only cleared to race earlier this week, doubts remain over whether the two cars will actually make it on the grid in Melbourne.
Moreover, when they do finally compete, it would be amazing if they were not anything but dead last - at least, though, they have made it this far. A baptism of fire awaits Essex lad Will Stevens and his Spanish team-mate Roberto Merhi but the rookies will hopefully be able to gain something out of the experience. If nothing else, the pair will have nothing to lose with Merhi also only actually announced as racing for the team earlier this week.

SAUBER-FERRARI   

	C34	GPs	Pole	Wins
9	Marcus ERICSSON (Swe)	16	0	0
12	Felipe NASR (Brz)	0	0	0

It went right to the wire - but, at the 11th hour, former Caterham driver Giedo van der Garde agreed to drop his legal action against Sauber. All the way through the saga, it had looked as if the opposite might be the case especially after judgements this week from the Victoria Supreme Court in Australia and an appeals hearing found the Dutchman had a case when he said he had been promised a seat at Sauber for 2015.
Nevertheless, van der Garde's decision to move on belatedly gives the team he nearly joined a chance to get on with what is an important campaign. Coming off the back of a dreadful 2014, which saw the Swiss outfit finish with nul points for the first time ever, 2015 can surely only be an improvement.
Coincidentally another former Caterham driver, Marcus Ericsson, and rookie Felipe Nasr have been given the task of restoring Sauber to a place of mid-table respectability. But, even without any further distractions from van der Garde, it looks a tough ask.

2015 RACE CALENDAR
Sky will broadcast all 20 races live on its dedicated channel (Sky 407). Where Sky is listed in the column below, the satellite channel has exclusively live coverage and the BBC will only show extended (delayed) highlights. The BBC has live coverage of 10 races where its name is listed below, notably omitting Monaco in May.

Date	TV		Pole position	Fastest lap	Winner
15 March	Sky	Australian Grand Prix
29 March	BBC	Malaysian Grand Prix
12 April	Sky	Chinese Grand Prix
19 April	BBC	Bahrain Grand Prix
10 May	Sky	Spanish Grand Prix
24 May	Sky	Monaco Grand Prix
7 June	BBC	Canadian Grand Prix
21 June	Sky	Austrian Grand Prix
5 July	BBC	British Grand Prix
19 July	Sky	German Grand Prix
26 July	BBC	Hungarian Grand Prix
23 August	BBC	Belgian Grand Prix
6 September	Sky	Italian Grand Prix
20 September	Sky	Singapore Grand Prix
27 September	BBC	Japanese Grand Prix
11 October	BBC	Russian Grand Prix
25 October	Sky	United States Grand Prix
1 November	Sky	Mexican Grand Prix
15 November	BBC	Brazilian Grand Prix
29 November	BBC	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

F1 2014 review: Magnificent Mercedes find no equal

MERCEDES - 701 points

01	Lewis Hamilton (Gbr)	Mercedes	384 (11 wins)
02	Nico Rosberg (Ger)	Mercedes	317 (5 wins)

Clearly having developed the best car on the grid by a distance following a regulations overhaul, Mercedes pair Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg quickly realised the title battle was between themselves.
And what a battle it proved to be - with the prediction of more to come after Monaco one of the easiest to make all year. After all, when there is a world championship on the line, even long-standing friendships will feel the strain and there were various flashpoints across the season.
In Monte Carlo, Hamilton felt Rosberg had denied him the chance to his improve on his best time in qualifying after parking up in Mirabeau. On a street circuit where it is notoriously difficult to overtake, Hamilton duly finished the race in second to his German team-mate.
In Hungary, Hamilton got revenge of sorts - refusing a team order to let Rosberg through - but, by the time the Belgian Grand Prix in Spa had finished later in the summer, Rosberg held a 29-point advantage, with Hamilton having been forced to retire as a result of a clash between the pair.
Then Rosberg seemed to crack - a rudimentary mistake at a chicane in Monza gifted Hamilton the Italian Grand Prix and, thereafter, the Briton stepped it up, winning five consecutive races to stretch his lead from Singapore onwards. Double points at Abu Dhabi kept Rosberg's hopes alive - but, as a result of Hamilton's great start and Rosberg's subsequent mechanical problems the much-anticipated Duel in the Desert never materialised. 

RED BULL-RENAULT - 405 points

03	Daniel Ricciardo (Aus)	Red Bull-Renault	238 (3 wins)
05	Sebastian Vettel (Ger)	Red Bull-Renault	167

So, Red Bull's RB10 was perhaps not as bad a car as it was made out to be in pre-season. Certainly, the ever-smiling Australian Daniel Ricciardo thought so - as he made good on move up the grid from sister team Toro Rosso in being the only driver not in a Mercedes to win a Grand Prix.
Not only that, he did it three times - in Canada, where he overtook an ailing Rosberg with two laps to go, and then in Hungary and Belgium where he took advantage of Mercedes infighting. Yes, there was perhaps an element of fortune to each of his wins - but five third-place finishes and regular scoring across the season ensured Ricciardo comfortably finished the best of the rest.
Sadly, the same could not be said of defending champion Sebastian Vettel after a difficult season which featured only four podium visits, with none of them coming on the top step. Beaten 12-7 in qualifying by his less experienced team-mate, the four-time champion cut a frustrated figure and, one year short of the end of his contract, ended up moving to Ferrari. An eighth-placed finish at Abu Dhabi was hardly a vintage way to go out from a team in which he had enjoyed record-breaking success - but anything else would have been atypical of his season. 

WILLIAMS-MERCEDES - 320 points

04	Valtteri Bottas (Fin)	Williams-Mercedes	186
07	Felipe Massa (Brz)	Williams-Mercedes	134

Williams-Mercedes enjoyed their best season in years - and appropriately finished on a high with the double podium in Abu Dhabi being their first since Nick Heidfeld and Mark Webber finished second and third at Monaco in 2005.
Of course, the Mercedes engines helped - but, in Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa, the Grove-based outfit also benefited from two highly-motivated drivers. For Bottas, the motivation presumably stemmed from the fact that he is only in his second season as an F1 driver - and yet, despite his relative inexperience, the Finn has already shown a lot desire to succeed. A mid-season run of four podium finishes out of five between the Grand Prix in Austria and Belgium was the highlight of a campaign in which he regularly carried most threat to the Mercedes pair.
For Massa, meanwhile, the move to Williams was meant to be a liberation from playing second fiddle to Fernando Alonso. Sadly, it did not quite work out like that - and Bottas out-qualified his Brazilian team-mate by 13-6. Nevertheless, Massa also suffered some dreadful luck on race day, being crashed into through no fault of his own on more than one occasion. Thankfully, the second half of the season proved more fruitful than with a second-placed finish in Abu Dhabi and third-placed finishes in Italy and, emotionally, at his home Grand Prix in Brazil.

FERRARI - 216 points

06	Fernando Alonso (Spa)	Ferrari	161
12	Kimi Räikkönen (Fin)	Ferrari	55

Ferrari got it all wrong yet again with the F14 T, producing another bang-average car. Nevertheless, it was the difference in attitude between two former world champions Fernando Alonso and Kimi Räikkönen which was more startling.
Alonso has long been the standard-bearer for the Italian giants and, once again this season, strived to do as well as he could in an almost impossible position. Visits to the podium in China and Hungary were phenomenal drives - and, altogether, the Spaniard still recorded 14 top-six finishes to earn sixth place in the overall standings. Ninth at Abu Dhabi is not how Alonso would have wanted to go out - but it really comes as no surprise that, after years of title-less trying, he has moved to pastures new.
Räikkönen, by contrast, has been retained despite being out-qualified by Alonso by 16-3 and driving around as if he has already taken an early retirement. Generally saving his best moments for his often hilarious communication with his team over the radio, his fourth place in Spa was a complete an anomaly in terms of his performance on the track. For, while he retired just once all season, in Silverstone, the Flying Finn finished outside of the points on no fewer than five occasions. 

MCLAREN-MERCEDES - 181 points

08	Jenson Button (Gbr)	McLaren-Mercedes	126
11	*Kevin Magnussen (Den)	McLaren-Mercedes	55

Oh dear. There can be few false dawns as bright as the one McLaren produced at the Australian Grand Prix eight months ago. 
With the disqualification of Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo, Danish debutant Kevin Magnussen was deemed to have finished second - the best finish by a rookie on debut since Jacques Villeneuve in 1996. Meanwhile, Jenson Button was also promoted to the podium in third - and, ever so briefly, it looked as if the Woking-based team might be the one likely to provide the closest challenge to the dominant Mercedes.
In the long run, though, the MP4-29 proved no better than the MP4-28 as McLaren chalked up consecutive fifth-placed finishes on what could sadly be Button's swansong. Yet, despite the doubts over his position for next year, the Frome flyer was absolutely key even to them achieving this modest target as he earned himself a creditable eighth place in the overall standings having had 12 other points finishes after Melbourne.
Indeed, the Briton's form in the last couple of months - two fourth places and two fifth in the last five races - was good enough to lift McLaren above Force India in an unexpected mid-table tussle. And, as he admitted himself, the fifth in Abu Dhabi was pretty much as good as it was going to get.
For Magnussen, the season unsurprisingly got no better than the second place in Australia as he finished with less than half the points of his vastly more experienced team-mate. Nevertheless, among the usual rookie errors, there were flashes of talent. He matched Button in qualifying - and secured a fifth-placed finish in Russia among his 12 points-based finishes altogether.

FORCE INDIA-MERCEDES - 155 points

09	Nico Hulkenberg (Ger)	Force India-Mercedes	96
10	Sergio Pérez (Mex)	Force India-Mercedes	59

Force India will keep faith in Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Pérez after both drivers scored consistently enough across the season to keep this solidly mid-table team solidly in mid-table. In fact, this is the third season in the last four that Force India have finished sixth in the Constructors' Championship - and, even then, the exceptional year was a seventh-placed finish.
Referring solely to 2014, the undoubted highlight was Pérez's podium visit in Bahrain - only the team's second ever top-three finish - but, in the final reckoning, it was actually team-mate Hulkenberg who could boast the better overall stats.
The German finished the season with more points, more points finishes, and a qualifying record which was 12-7 in his favour. Indeed, he started the season with 10 consecutive points finishes and only missed out on four occasions, twice through retirement.
Ultimately, thanks mainly to Jenson Button's late-season form for McLaren, the efforts of Hulkenberg, in particular, and Pérez were not quite good enough to cause a surprise and break Force India into that top five. But they were not too far away either - and, in fact, held the position above McLaren as late as mid-October.

TORO ROSSO-RENAULT - 30 points

13	Jean-Eric Vergne (Fra)	Toro-Rosso-Renault	22
15	*Daniil Kyvat (Rus)	Toro-Rosso-Renault	8

Russian rookie Daniil Kyvat provided some early-season excitement by finishing in the points positions in three of the opening four Grand Prix - but, in the end, it was his slightly more experienced team-mate Jean-Eric Vergne who picked up more points across the season. 
For, while Kyvat would only feature in the top 10 twice more from the Spanish Grand Prix onwards, Vergne enjoyed seven points-based finishes across the campaign including a sixth place under the lights in Singapore.
Still, perhaps as a result of him out-qualifying Vergne by 12-7, Kyvat has ended up being the ultimate victor in this tussle, the Russian having been fast-tracked to support Daniel Ricciardo at Toro Rosso's big brother Red Bull. Vergne today announced he will no longer race for Toro Rosso so it remains to be seen who will partner 17-year-old rookie Max Verstappen next year.

LOTUS-RENAULT - 10 points

14	Romain Grosjean (Fra)	Lotus-Renault	8
16	Pastor Maldonado (Ven)	Lotus-Renault	2

For Lotus, who finished fourth in the Constructors' Championship in 2013, the season had gone into a stall before it had even properly begun. In pre-season testing, their car ran fewer laps than any other - and at the opening race in Australia, it showed. 
Both cars qualified behind Marussia and Caterham with Pastor Maldonado not even able to set a time and Romain Grosjean was then forced to start from the pit-lane due to making car modifications under parc ferme conditions. Finally, in the race itself, the two cars retired within a lap of one another with the same power unit problem.
It did get slightly better - Grosjean finished eighth in consecutive races in Spain and Monaco, while crash-happy Maldonado eventually stayed out of trouble at antepenultimate race in the United States to finish ninth. But these were the only points finishes of the season - and, with cash-strapped Lotus retaining the same driver line-up for 2015, all hope is being pinned on the acquisition of a Mercedes engine. 

MARUSSIA-FERRARI - 2 points

17	Jules Bianchi (Fra)	Marussia-Ferrari	2
21	Max Chilton (Gbr)	Marussia-Ferrari	0

From glory to despair via still possibly tragic circumstances, Marussia have endured a bizarrely notorious season for a back-marker, failing to make it to end before going out of business. 
The highlight came at Monaco where Frenchman Jules Bianchi finished ninth to earn the team their first ever points at their 83rd attempt and his 25th. It was a deserved outcome for Bianchi who had regularly finished further up the classification than he ought to - his future looked bright, even if the same could not be said of Marussia.
Then, in Japan, in extremely wet conditions, Bianchi suffered a horrific crash head-first into a crane rescuing the stricken Sauber of Adrian Sutil. It was a reminder of just how dangerous Formula One can be, even with the great advances in safety since the death of Ayrton Senna 20 years ago. Yet, as the paddock admirably rallied together, the Bianchi accident also demonstrated just how much this sport means to the drivers that they willingly continue to subject themselves to such possible outcomes. Bianchi remains unconscious and in a critical condition - and, for what little it is worth, this report still hopes for the best.
Team-mate Max Chilton only competed in one more race, retiring from the Russian Grand Prix on lap nine with a suspension problem. It was a rare retirement for the Briton - but, having been out-qualified 12-3 by Bianchi, the youngster from Reigate has just as rarely shown the raw pace of his team-mate. The demise of Marussia leaves him without a seat in 2015.

SAUBER-FERRARI - 0 points

18	Adrian Sutil (Ger)	Sauber-Ferrari	0
20	Esteban Gutiérrez (Mex)	Sauber-Ferrari	0

Sauber-Ferrari suffered their worst ever season in 22 years of involvement in Formula One, failing to score across a whole campaign for the first time ever. 
Kept off the bottom only thanks to Adrian Sutil's two 11th-placed finishes in Australia and Hungary, this was as good as it got for a usually solidly mid-table team.
Mexican team-mate Esteban Gutiérrez could only manage a best of 13th - once at Suzuka in Japan - and so it is no surprise to see Swiss owner Peter Sauber bring in a whole new line-up for 2015 with former Caterham driver Marcus Ericsson being joined by Brazilian rookie Felipe Nasr.

CATERHAM-RENAULT - 0 points

19	*Marcus Ericsson (Swe)	Caterham-Renault	0
22	Kamui Kobayashi (Jpn)	Caterham-Renault	0
23	*Will Stevens (Gbr)	Caterham-Renault	0

Caterham-Renault were the only team to use more than two drivers across the season - and, just as none of their choices scored any points at all, the whole team effectively stumbled over the finish line in Abu Dhabi.
Forced into administration after the Russian Grand Prix with the loss of 230 jobs, Caterham missed two Grand Prix altogether in United States and Brazil. They then only made it to the season-closer in the United Arab Emirates thanks to an effective crowd-sourcing campaign.
For the record, Caterham's best finish was 11th from Swedish rookie Marcus Ericsson in Monaco while Japanese driver Kamui Kobayashi managed two 13th-placed finishes in Malaysia and Monaco again.
British youngster Will Stevens was 17th and last to finish on his Grand Prix debut in Abu Dhabi (replacing Ericsson) - but now the hard work for Caterham really begins as they seek some secure backing to salvage their position on the grid.

FORMULA ONE 2014 REPORTS
14.03 Season preview: Ripe for renewal
29.05 More to come from Mercedes pair
07.07 Hamilton shines at Silverstone
22.09 Hamilton leads the way under the Singapore lights
24.11 Hamilton reaches another level

F1 2014: Ripe for renewal

LEWIS HAMILTON is being hotly tipped to win a second world title as Formula One receives a much-needed shot in the arm from a whole raft of technological changes.

Hamilton's team Mercedes has appeared to adapt better than its rivals to the new regulations - and the Briton thus has high hopes that the German outfit can supply him with a car good enough to land a second Championship, six years after his first.

Of course, much of the intervening period has seen Sebastian Vettel and his Red Bull team utterly dominate the sport.

The German won a fourth successive Drivers' Championship - and it was ultimately his most clear-cut success yet as he racked up nine consecutive race wins, a record for a single season.

But, sadly for F1 in 2013 - which had actually begun brightly with several different winners - the repetitive Vettel victories in the second half of the season eventually became an exercise in tedium.

The streak could even be said to have been aided and abetted by rival teams, some of whom openly admitted they had already shifted their focus to 2014.

At least Vettel will find it more difficult this year - indeed, it could be a real struggle if Red Bull's form in winter testing is anything to go by.

The champions hit a new low in the second spell of Bahrain testing where Vettel failed even to complete a single lap.

But the irony of the situation is that, if the German can still get some big results in a bang average car, he may actually enhance his overall reputation.

One driver who knows plenty about that sort of thing is Fernando Alonso.

For some years now, the Spaniard has outperformed a Ferrari team which has finished third in the Constructors' Championship for three of the last four years.

With so many changes going into 2014, the Italians simply must see this as a chance to win back that title for the first time since 2008 - and the Drivers' Championship for the first time since 2007.

That title, seven years ago, was won by the 'Ice Man' Kimi Räikkönen and, following a couple of years rallying and a couple more at Lotus, the Finn is back at Ferrari.

His arrival provides us with a fascinating in-house rivalry but it could, of course, work against both drivers.

After all, sooner rather than later, one of the two drivers will need to be favoured, although it is not just at Ferrari where this is an issue.

At Mercedes too, Hamilton will receive plenty of competition from his German team-mate Nico Rosberg, and the team may have also dropped a clanger in bizarrely parting ways with phenomenal technician Ross Brawn.

The situation at McLaren is rather clearer. Ron Dennis is firmly back in charge and Jenson Button is the Woking-based team's obvious number one, lining up alongside Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen.

The Frome Flyer really must use his position to is advantage - although he can only hope McLaren provides a better car than last season's unprecedented disaster.

Williams also struggled last year, as it has for some years now. However, with a Mercedes engine and the best livery (pictured) on the grid thanks to sponsorship from Martini, the Oxfordshire team wants to show it will not just be a pretty face.

Felipe Massa arrives from Ferrari, a good match with both team and driver seemingly in need of a pick up.

How apt it would be if the Brazilian Massa could deliver it with a race win, 20 years on from the ill-timed loss of his compatriot Ayrton Senna - who met his tragic end in a Williams, of course.

Certainly, Williams can look forward to this season with great optimism and an expectation that it can leapfrog the trio of respectable mid-table bunch - Force India, Sauber and Toro Rosso.

Even the Lotus, fourth in the Constructors' race last year, is eminently catchable after a truly dire winter in which the E22 somehow completed fewer laps than the new Red Bull.

Added to that, Lotus has opted for the curious strategy of retaining Romain Grosjean (though he  improved last year) and pairing him with another crash-happy driver, Pastor Maldonado.

Yes, Lotus could be the team to watch in 2014 - but only for all of the wrong reasons.

Finally, there come the stragglers. For, although the sport this year is expected to bring a whirlwind of change, the backmarkers will feature familiar names and faces.

Caterham, who finished bottom last year, fields Kamui Kobayashi and Swedish debutant Marcus Ericsson, both of whom have owner Tony Fernandes' threat to quit F1 ringing in their ears.

But, at least, there is more hope at Marussia, which - with Ferrari engines - may raise a challenge to Toro Rosso.

This is good news, of course, for the third Briton on the grid, Max Chilton, who became the only driver to finish every race of his rookie season last year

However, the 22-year-old from Reigate will need to get much closer to his French team-mate Jules Bianchi for 2014 to be considered a success.

Frankly though, at this stage, who knows what is going to happen between now and the final race in Abu Dhabi where the horribly-gimmicky double points will be awarded.

At least that will probably mean the title goes to the wire - but only after the best season in years for thrills and spills anyway.

The campaign begins in Melbourne with the Australian Grand Prix this weekend. Qualifying will be held at 6am GMT on Saturday with the race starting 24 hours later.

ON THE GRID

RED BULL-RENAULT

1	Sebastian Vettel (GER)	GPs 120	Pole 45	Wins 39
3	Daniel Ricciardo (AUS)	GPs 50	Pole 0	Wins 0

MERCEDES

6	Nico Rosberg (GER)	GPs 147	Pole 4	Wins 3
44	Lewis Hamilton (GBR)	GPs 129	Pole 31	Wins 22

FERRARI

7	Kimi Räikkönen (FIN)	GPs 194	Pole 16	Wins 20
14	Fernando Alonso (ESP)	GPs 217	Pole 22	Wins 32

LOTUS-RENAULT

8	Romain Grosjean (FRA)	GPs 45	Pole 0	Wins 0
13	Pastor Maldonado (VEN)	GPs 58	Pole 1	Wins 1

MCLAREN-MERCEDES

20	Kevin Magnussen (DEN)	GPs 0	Pole 0	Wins 0
22	Jenson Button (GBR)	GPs 249	Pole 8	Wins 15

FORCE INDIA-MERCEDES

11	Sergio Pérez (MEX)	GPs 58	Pole 0	Wins 0
27	Nico Hülkenberg (GER)	GPs 58	Pole 1	Wins 0

SAUBER-FERRARI

21	Esteban Gutiérrez (MEX)	GPs 19	Pole 0	Wins 0
99	Adrian Sutil (GER)	GPs109	Pole 0	Wins 0

TORO ROSSO-RENAULT

25	Jean-Éric Vergne (FRA)	GPs 39	Pole 0	Wins 0
26	Daniil Kvyat (RUS)	GPs 0	Pole 0	Wins 0

WILLIAMS-MERCEDES

19	Felipe Massa (BRZ)	GPs 193	Pole 15	Wins 11
77	Valtteri Bottas (FIN)	GPs 19	Pole 0	Wins 0

MARUSSIA-FERRARI

4	Max Chilton (GBR)	GPs 19	Pole 0	Wins 0
17	Jules Bianchi (FRA)	GPs 19	Pole 0	Wins 0

CATERHAM-RENAULT

9	Marcus Ericsson (SWE)	GPs 0	Pole 0	Wins 0
10	Kamui Kobayashi (JPN)	GPs 60	Pole 0	Wins 0

2014 RACE CALENDAR

As with the last two seasons, Sky will broadcast every race on their dedicated channel (Sky 408). Where Sky is listed in the column below, the satellite channel will have exclusively live coverage and the BBC will only show extended (delayed) highlights. The BBC has live coverage of nine races where its name is listed below, notably omitting Monaco in May.

Date	TV		Pole position	Fastest lap	Winner
16 March	Sky	Australian Grand Prix	Hamilton	Rosberg	Rosberg
30 March	BBC	Malaysian Grand Prix	Hamilton	Hamilton	Hamilton
6 April	Sky	Bahrain Grand Prix	Rosberg	Rosberg	Hamilton
20 April	Sky	Chinese Grand Prix
11 May	BBC	Spanish Grand Prix
25 May	Sky	Monaco Grand Prix
8 June	BBC	Canadian Grand Prix
22 June	Sky	Austrian Grand Prix
6 July	BBC	British Grand Prix
20 July	Sky	German Grand Prix
27 July	Sky	Hungarian Grand Prix
24 August	BBC	Belgian Grand Prix
7 September	BBC	Italian Grand Prix
21 September	Sky	Singapore Grand Prix
5 October	BBC	Japanese Grand Prix
12 October	BBC	Russian Grand Prix
2 November	Sky	United States Grand Prix
9 November	Sky	Brazilian Grand Prix
23 November	BBC	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

F1 2013 team-by-team review: Imperious Vettel makes it nine in a row

01 RED BULL-RENAULT

01	Sebastian Vettel (Ger)	Red Bull-Renault	397 (13 wins)
03	Mark Webber (Aus)	Red Bull-Renault	199

2014 Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo
The commentators ran out of superlatives to describe Sebastian Vettel's achievements in 2013 - and, no wonder, considering he joined a club of only three other drivers in winning the F1 world title four times, also being the youngest of those. This is, indeed, Vettel's fourth consecutive title and it was easily his most convincing - even more clear-cut than his previous runaway success in 2011. The defence actually began no more than steadily in the first half of the season with victories in Malaysia, Bahrain, Canada and at the Nurburgring in Germany, his first home triumph.
However, a mid-season tyre change by Pirelli following a series of dangerous incidents at Silverstone seemed to benefit Red Bull more than anyone else. From Belgium onwards, Vettel won every single race, a streak of nine successive victories, equalling Alberto Ascari's 60-year-old record and breaking the record by two for the number of consecutive wins within a single season. Not everyone appreciated Vettel's utter dominance and, admittedly, the races at the front did become a complete bore for the television companies to cover. But, still, the German did not deserve to be booed when collecting the top prize on various podiums around the world. After all, he could only do what he is paid to do, and win.
Vettel has been accused of being rather arrogant in his celebrations with his detractors pointing towards the one-finger salute and his tendency to celebrate by making tyre doughnuts on the track. However, in his last couple of races, the radio messages to his team made it clear he is very self-aware that 2014 will be much tougher for him to win with the new smaller engine sizes among a whole raft of changes being brought in. Enjoy this dominance while we can was pretty much the message he wanted to give. But, at just 26, and with Adrian Newey still at the helm at Red Bull, it is perhaps no surprise that the German should already be listed as odds on for a fifth consecutive crown in 2015.
One man who will not be there to see that, if it happens, is Vettel's long-suffering team-mate Mark Webber. The Australian has often given the impression that he felt his younger counterpart was favoured by the team but the brutal facts are simply that Vettel has been the quicker driver over the last few years and no amount of bickering about team orders can hide that fact. Still, Vettel's decision to overtake in Malaysia against a clear team order was clearly the final straw for Webber and it was no surprise in June he announced he was leaving Red Bull for Sportcars.
Nevertheless, the Aussie has never resolved his own problem of a lack of speed off the start line though, against that, it is of huge credit to him that he has often fought his way back up the field. And, while he did not manage a Grand Prix win in his final season in F1, Webber did finish second on no fewer than five occasions, four of which contributed to Red Bull 1-2s. As the ultimate team player - in a brilliantly successful team - and, as a nice Australian to boot, he can leave F1 for Sportcars with his head held high.

02 MERCEDES

04	Lewis Hamilton (Gbr)	McLaren-Mercedes	189 (1 win)
06	Nico Rosberg (Ger)	Mercedes	171 (2 wins)

2014 Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg
Mercedes have kept faith with the Lewis Hamilton-Nico Rosberg partnership for 2014 and it really is not hard to see why after an impressive set of results saw the German team finish in second, ahead of Ferrari and Lotus. Indeed, before the mid-year tyre change put clear water between Red Bull and the rest, Mercedes were challenging having chalked up three wins. Rosberg enjoyed a mid-season purple patch to record two wins in three races, in Monaco and at Silverstone - and this undoubtedly once again demonstrated the cracking character of the young German who has previously outlasted Michael Schumacher's misguided comeback.
Nevertheless, he still finished 18 points down on Hamilton although, looking back, this was largely down to a slow start - Rosberg retired twice in the opening three races - and, thereafter, the Grand Prix, in Hungary, which the Briton won and Rosberg could not finish due to an engine problem. At least, that victory allowed Hamilton to justify easily his risky move from his boyhood team McLaren in the last close season.
Friends since their karting days as teenagers, Hamilton and Rosberg clearly have a mutual respect for each other, and actually a great blend of youth and experience to form a formidable F1 partnership. Or, at least, they would have had more chance of that if Mercedes had not messed the team's best chance of securing a title next season by letting the phenomenal technician Ross Brawn go, late in this campaign. Frankly, Hamilton must be praying that Brawn does not turn up at one of his rivals as he seems destined to do.

03 FERRARI

02	Fernando Alonso (Spa)	Ferrari	242 (2 wins)
08	Felipe Massa (Brz)	Ferrari	112

2014 Fernando Alonso, Kimi Raikkonen
Another frustrating campaign for Ferrari even saw them cede second place in the Constructors' Championship to Mercedes, and this despite a decent start from number one driver Fernando Alonso. When the Spaniard last tasted victory, back on 12 May in his home Grand Prix in Barcelona, he was just 17 points behind Sebastian Vettel having matched the German in race wins with two each and, as ever, Alonso battled hard for the remainder of the season, finishing on the podium seven times, scoring five runners-up spots and two third places to finish clear in second place in the Drivers' Championship.
But Ferrari were clearly unable to compete with Red Bull again and, to a winner like Alonso, his second place feels like nowhere. Indeed, aged 32, he is no doubt beginning to wonder if he will ever add to the two world titles which he won with Renault in 2005 and 2006, and that frustration boiled over in a mid-season row with the team president, Luca di Montezemolo. Bearing that in mind, it will be interesting to see how Alonso copes in 2014 with a more competitive team-mate in Kimi Raikkonen, with Felipe Massa having finally drunk in the last chance saloon for too long.
Arguably, Massa has never been the same since his serious accident in 2009, the Brazilian seemed all too content in his role as a support driver for Alonso, scoring just one podium all season - and that came in Spain where, for the one and only time in 2013, Ferrari were the dominant force. Nevertheless, Massa's consistency was much improved as the season wore on and he achieved fourth-placed finishes at Ferrari's spiritual home at Monza in Italy, and also in India, as part of a streak of nine points finishes from the last 10 races. Massa's choice of Williams is an interesting one and, in an ideal world, both driver and new team will help to give each other a lift.

04 LOTUS-RENAULT

05	Kimi Raikkonen (Fin)	Lotus-Renault	183 (1 win)
07	Romain Grosjean (Fra)	Lotus-Renault	132
21	Heikki Kovalainen (Fin)	Lotus-Renault	0

2014 Both drivers TBC
Lotus enjoyed another strong showing with Kimi Raikkonen considered a genuine title contender in the early part of the season. Indeed, the Finn won the opening Grand Prix in Australia before stepping up on the second rung of the podium in three consecutive races, in China, Bahrain and Spain - all in the first five races. A three-race spell outside of the top three followed, before another set of successive second places in Germany and Hungary. Then came a retirement at Spa in Belgium, a significant moment as it brought to an end his remarkable run of consecutive points finishes at 27 races.
More vitally, he dropped from second to fourth in the championship and fell ever further away from run-away leader Sebastian Vettel. Further podium appearances at Singapore and Korea followed but, having already agreed to join Ferrari, Raikkonen then refused to race in the last two Grand Prix, citing a back problem which was likely more to do with the fact that it emerged Lotus's financial problems had meant he had been going unpaid. Compatriot Heikki Kovalainen replaced him but failed to score with consecutive 14th-placed finishes.
Romain Grosjean did impress, though, and restored his accident-prone reputation which was borne out of his involvement in no fewer than seven first lap incidents in 2012. Fatherhood seems to have settled down the Frenchman - or maybe he was just never as poor a driver as his previous demolition derby form suggested. For while, of course, he could not match Raikkonen, he did make six of his own visits to the podium altogether, four of which were in the last six races. That sort of form, if carried through, suggests a fruitful 2014 is in the offing for Grosjean - but much depends on the identity of his team-mate and if indeed the team can establish a sounder financial footing.

05 McLAREN-MERCEDES

09	Jenson Button (Gbr)	McLaren-Mercedes	73
11	Sergio Perez (Mex)	McLaren-Mercedes	49

2014 Jenson Button, Kevin Magnussen
Having finished with the fastest car on the grid at the back end of the 2012 season, it came as something of a surprise to see McLaren become the first major team to drop out of contention. Well, it did until we had the misfortune of seeing the MP4-28 on the track. This was a truly rotten car, which ultimately served up the team's worst performance in 33 years, the last time the Woking-based outfit failed even to make it onto the podium once.
The closest McLaren got to a top-three finish in 2013 was from Jenson Button's fourth-place finish in the season finale in Brazil and, in fairness, the 2009 champion often did as best he could with the equipment he had. For a start, he never retired all season - and he scored, or rather often scraped, points from all but five of the races. Button must hope that, having been treading water since a runners-up finish in the Drivers' Championship in 2011, his team take advantage of the new regulations and an increased development time to come up with a properly competitive car. A reunification with Ross Brawn, not entirely out of the question, would be the icing on the cake.
Whatever happens in Woking over the off-season, Sergio Perez will not be there to see it having been ditched in favour of Kevin Magnussen. The Dane has graduated from McLaren's Young Driver Programme and he replaces Mexican Perez who, despite showing flashes of his speed, struggled for consistency until four consecutive points-based finishes in the last four races which, by then, was too late to save his job. A return to Sauber looks the obvious next move.

06 FORCE INDIA-MERCEDES

12	Paul di Resta (Gbr)	Force India-Mercedes	48
13	Adrian Sutil (Ger)	Force India-Mercedes	29

2014 Both drivers TBC
Consistency remains elusive to Force India who nevertheless jumped back above Sauber in the mid-table of the Constructors' Championship, having finished behind the Swiss team last year. However, that outcome is still hardly good enough for this highly-ambitious team, meaning neither Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil can yet be sure of taking their seats next season.
After a decent start, in which he scored points in seven of the opening eight races including a fourth place in Bahrain, di Resta suffered a mid-season slump which saw him then fail to score in seven successive races. Now it remains to be seen if a slight return to form - an eighth-placed finish in India and a sixth in Abu Dhabi - will be enough for the genial Scot to save his position but, ultimately the fact that he does not bring in any money in terms of sponsorship is likely to count against him.
German Adrian Sutil has done, hence his return to the team even after he was convicted of an assault in a nightclub which meant that he missed the whole of the 2012 campaign. Like di Resta, though, Sutil's season faded after a bright start, though this is a reflection on the fact that Force India struggled with the mid-year tyre change more than most.

07 SAUBER-FERRARI

10	Nico Hulkenberg (Ger)	Sauber-Ferrari	51
16	Esteban Gutierrez (Mex)*	Sauber-Ferrari	6

2014 Sergey Sirotkin, TBC
Nico Hulkenberg probably got more out of his car in respect of its limitations than any other driver on the grid, regularly qualifying in the top 10 and securing 10 points-based finishes across the season including a fourth-place in Korea. In all, the 26-year-old German scored a remarkable 89% of Sauber's 57 points with no other driver outscoring his team-mate quite as heavily as Hulkenburg did.
In fairness to Esteban Gutierrez, this was his rookie season, and Hulkenburg was extremely good, but the gap still yawned far too wide at times. Worryingly for the Mexican, Sauber have already brought in Russian teenager Sergey Sirotkin to fill a seat next season and it is doubtful if the Swiss outfit would put two such inexperienced drivers together. Regardless of what happens, though, Hulkenburg can surely expect a better offer than Sauber with rumours that Force India or even Lotus are looking to snap him up.

08 TORO ROSSO-FERRARI

14	Daniel Ricciardo (Aus)	Toro-Rosso-Ferrari	20
15	Jean-Eric Vergne (Fra)	Toro-Rosso-Ferrari	13

2014 Daniil Kvyat, Jean-Eric Vergne
And another one graduates! Daniel Ricciardo's regular points-scoring finishes was always likely to be enough to catch the attention of Toro Rosso's more established big brother Red Bull - and Ricciardo would have had to be crazy to turn down the chance to drive at, presumably, the top end of the grid for the four-time Constructors' champions.
It is really nothing more than Ricciardo deserves, having scored points in seven of this season's Grand Prix, results which included two seventh-placed finishes in China and Italy. Team-mate Jean-Eric Vergne also started well, a sixth-place finish in Canada actually putting him six points clear of Ricciardo after seven races. However, that was the last time that the Frenchman scored all season while, in comparison, Ricciardo continued to pick up points here and there right up until the season finale in Brazil.
For now, Vergne has hung onto his seat at the Italian-based team and, in 2014, will be joined by young Russian GP3 champion Daniil Kvyat. Ricciardo, meanwhile, must be careful that his assumed status as number two driver to four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel does not stunt his own development. After all, he is much younger than the man he replaces, his compatriot Mark Webber.

09 WILLIAMS-RENAULT

17	Valtteri Bottas (Fin)*	Williams-Renault	4
18	Pastor Maldonado (Ven)	Williams-Renault	1

2014 Valtteri Bottas, Felipe Massa
Following a year of seemingly genuine progress in 2012, Williams reverted to their 2011 form at the back of the grid over the past 12 months, scoring just five points all season. Nevertheless, there were still some positives, almost exclusively from Valtteri Bottas who was rewarded for a solid debut season with an eighth-placed finish in the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.
That was enough for Bottas to earn a seat at the British team next season alongside Felipe Massa who joins from Ferrari to replace the desperately disappointing Pastor Maldonado. The Venezuelan scored just a single point this year, in Hungary, and he was regularly outperformed by his rookie team-mate and that win at the Spanish Grand Prix from pole last year now seems completely unfathomable. Instead, Maldonado departs F1 with a reputation for being unable to stay out of trouble, while his unfounded, perhaps even envious, accusations of sabotage in Texas will hardly endear him to potential suitors.

10 MARUSSIA-COSWORTH

19	Jules Bianchi (Fra)*	Marussia-Cosworth	0
23	Max Chilton (Gbr)*	Marussia-Cosworth	0

2014 Jules Bianchi, TBC
Of all the drivers destined to finish on nul points, Jules Bianchi showed the best glimpses. The Frenchman's best result came early on in the season as a 13th-placed finish in Malaysia kept him above his fellow-non scorers and, much more vitally, ultimately secured prize money for 10th place in the Constructors' Championship for Marussia.
Fellow F1 debutant Max Chilton was far more cautious, often trundling around at the back. Nevertheless, the 22-year-old Briton still achieved an extraordinary result in finishing every single Grand Prix of the season, becoming the first rookie ever to do so. A spate of retirements in Monaco ensured a season's best finish of 14th.

11 CATERHAM-RENAULT

20	Charles Pic (Fra)	Caterham-Renault	0
22	Giedo van der Garde (Ned)*	Caterham-Renault	0

2014 Both drivers TBC
Caterham bring up the rear this year having indeed slipped a place as compared to 12 months ago following a difficult second season for Frenchman Charles Pic and a real struggle for Dutch debutant Giedo van der Garde.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, despite signing a multi-year deal at the back of last season, Pic's place in the team next year has not be confirmed and nor has GP2 graduate van der Garde. Both could score no higher than 14th-placed finishes in 2013 with Pic achieving this in Malaysia and Korea, and van der Garde once in Hungary. Both drivers also matched each other with the number of retirements with four.

CALENDAR

Date	Television		Pole position	Fastest lap	Winner
17 March	Sky	Australian Grand Prix	Vettel	Raikkonen	Raikkonen
24 March	Sky	Malaysian Grand Prix	Vettel	Perez	Vettel
14 April	BBC Sky	Chinese Grand Prix	Hamilton	Vettel	Alonso
21 April	Sky	Bahrain Grand Prix	Rosberg	Vettel	Vettel
12 May	BBC Sky	Spanish Grand Prix	Rosberg	Gutierrez	Alonso
26 May	Sky	Monaco Grand Prix	Rosberg	Vettel	Rosberg
9 June	BBC Sky	Canadian Grand Prix	Vettel	Webber	Vettel
30 June	BBC Sky	British Grand Prix	Hamilton	Webber	Rosberg
7 July	Sky	German Grand Prix	Hamilton	Alonso	Vettel
28 July	Sky	Hungarian Grand Prix	Hamilton	Webber	Hamilton
25 August	BBC Sky	Belgian Grand Prix	Hamilton	Vettel	Vettel
8 September	BBC Sky	Italian Grand Prix	Vettel	Hamilton	Vettel
22 September	Sky	Singapore Grand Prix	Vettel	Vettel	Vettel
6 October	Sky	Korean Grand Prix	Vettel	Vettel	Vettel
13 October	BBC Sky	Japanese Grand Prix	Webber	Webber	Vettel
27 October	BBC Sky	Indian Grand Prix	Vettel	Raikkonen	Vettel
3 November	Sky	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Webber	Alonso	Vettel
17 November	Sky	United States Grand Prix	Vettel	Vettel	Vettel
24 November	BBC Sky	Brazilian Grand Prix	Vettel	Webber	Vettel

STANDINGS
Drivers' Championship

P	Driver	Team	Points
01	Sebastian Vettel (Ger)	Red Bull-Renault	397 (13 wins)
02	Fernando Alonso (Spa)	Ferrari	242 (2 wins)
03	Mark Webber (Aus)	Red Bull-Renault	199
04	Lewis Hamilton (Gbr)	McLaren-Mercedes	189 (1 win)
05	Kimi Raikkonen (Fin)	Lotus-Renault	183 (1 win)
06	Nico Rosberg (Ger)	Mercedes	171 (2 wins)
07	Romain Grosjean (Fra)	Lotus-Renault	132
08	Felipe Massa (Brz)	Ferrari	112
09	Jenson Button (Gbr)	McLaren-Mercedes	73
10	Nico Hulkenberg (Ger)	Sauber-Ferrari	51
11	Sergio Perez (Mex)	McLaren-Mercedes	49
12	Paul di Resta (Gbr)	Force India-Mercedes	48
13	Adrian Sutil (Ger)	Force India-Mercedes	29
14	Daniel Ricciardo (Aus)	Toro-Rosso-Ferrari	20
15	Jean-Eric Vergne (Fra)	Toro-Rosso-Ferrari	13
16	Esteban Gutierrez (Mex)*	Sauber-Ferrari	6
17	Valtteri Bottas (Fin)*	Williams-Renault	4
18	Pastor Maldonado (Ven)	Williams-Renault	1
19	Jules Bianchi (Fra)*	Marussia-Cosworth	0
20	Charles Pic (Fra)	Caterham-Renault	0
21	Heikki Kovalainen (Fin)	Lotus-Renault	0
22	Giedo van der Garde (Ned)*	Caterham-Renault	0
23	Max Chilton (Gbr)*	Marussia-Cosworth	0

*= Debut season in F1

Constructors' Championship

P	Team	Points
01	Red Bull-Renault	596 (13 wins)
02	Mercedes	360 (3 wins)
03	Ferrari	354 (2 wins)
04	Lotus-Renault	315 (1 win)
05	McLaren-Mercedes	122
06	Force India-Mercedes	77
07	Sauber-Ferrari	57
08	Toro Rosso-Ferrari	33
09	Williams-Renault	5
10	Marussia-Cosworth	0
11	Caterham-Renault	0