With the 2015 Formula One season but a mere chapter now in the sport’s illustrious history, it is the time now to reflect upon another year of racing.
At the start of the season, I penned a piece for The Roar picking out four drivers that would have certain expectations upon them in their respective campaigns.
The time is right to view whether these drivers have indeed lived up to those initial expectations, or simply whether they weren’t on the mark.
Sebastian Vettel
Despite being a four-time world champion, Sebastian Vettel still had the weight of the world on him when he left his birthplace at Red Bull to follow his heart to Maranello.
Fans’ major criticism of the German was that without Adrian Newey’s genius behind him he wouldn’t be able to succeed in the sport. Thus the expectation on him to prove the doubters wrong in his first year at Ferrari.
Boy did he prove them wrong. As part of a total rejuvenation for the legendary Italian marque, Vettel’s career drew new breath after the disgruntlement of his final Red Bull campaign in 2014.
He admirably led the red team with three dominant victories, surpassing even the team’s own objectives – as well as thirteen podiums including the wins. At the same time he proved that he is a driver that deserves a spot alongside the legends of yesteryear.
Under pressure now to topple incumbent champions Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes AMG, Vettel’s true status in Formula One folklore will be sealed in 2016.
Valtteri Bottas
After such a successful outing in 2014, there was an onus on the junior Finn and his Williams squad to up the ante this year.
Unfortunately that elusive maiden victory for Bottas, which many had touted would happen in 2015, did not come to fruition.
It is difficult, though, to concretely state that Bottas had a poor season or an exceptional season.
He did achieve fifth in the standings, ahead of experienced teammate Felipe Massa, and scored two podium places. There was also that back injury sustained during qualifying, which saw him miss the Australian Grand Prix.
But it just feels as if he didn’t really captivate as he did the year before.
Part of that could be attributed to the fact the FW37 was not as adept as the drastically improved Ferrari, however there were times the Finn failed to be the driver we had hoped he’d be heading into 2015.
Max Verstappen
Wow. Simply wow. Many experts, upon the teenager’s controversial appointment to Toro Rosso for 2015, had their pitchforks sharpened and lit. The fact that a prestigious sport such as Formula One had stooped to a level in which it would have drivers who were still too young to drive on roads, let alone at the highest echelons of motorsport, was too much.
But it’s quite pleasing to see that young Verstappen has hushed those critics, as he injected new life into a sport which has endured heavy critique this season for its monotonous brand of racing.
Achieving a pair of fourth places and being on the cusp of a top 10 finish in the standings for his rookie season are just the tip of the iceberg with the Dutchman.
His racecraft and bold manoeuvres against rivals have been so spectacular and have elicited pundits to compare him to impalpable names such as Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher.
And even though he ended his rookie outing with more penalty points on his super-licence than the comical Pastor Maldonado, he’s shown that Formula One races can be exciting while ambassadors such as Lewis Hamilton continue to moan about being unable to overtake his teammate.
With potentially two decades of Formula One ahead of him, there’s no doubt that this kid is destined for greatness.
Nico Rosberg
Having only just lost the 2014 title to his Silver Arrows teammate in Hamilton, there was a vow from Nico Rosberg that he’d be back in 2015 for all or nothing.
Sadly, that was not the case. Hamilton, rather without challenge, wrapped up his third world title with three races to spare.
It’s not just, however, to conclude Rosberg’s year as being entirely lacklustre on his behalf. There has been plenty of misfortune in the form of reliability issues with his W06 Hybrid. Issues that his teammate seemed to avoid through the duration of the season.
There were times, though, where Rosberg’s demeanour evoked memories of famous ‘number two’ drivers such as Rubens Barrichello and Mark Webber.
But the streak of six pole positions and three victories that the German attained at the end of the season demonstrated that he still may have the ability to dethrone Hamilton.
2015 may have ended with no title for Rosberg, but if the mojo that he discovered from Mexico onwards continues into 2016 then we’re in for one outstanding title race.
Looking for great odds on racing and sport? Get into the action with PlayUp today. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.
Red Bull and Max Verstappen vaulted right back to the top of the charts with a win in Suzuka, after his DNF in Melbourne.
Japan Grand Prix has been the most entertaining of the season to date, but Max Verstappen was back to his winning ways.
This season is only four races old, but Fernando Alonso needs to decide on his future beyond this year sooner rather than later. Formula…
It’s a pretty good time to be a Tasmanian sports fan right now. After years in the sporting wilderness with not much to celebrate,…
The question remains where the Australian Grand Prix winner will be in 2025 and whether it’ll be somewhere his value can truly be appreciated.
The author of a new book on Aussie F1 prodigy Oscar Piastri believes the Melbourne driver has what it takes to become Australia’s first…
