Well this summer break seems to be going on for ever, and sea of loutish hooliganism that is the football season is going to take over the lives of the approximate seven people who support football. So I thought this was the best time to introduce some common sense and parity to the internet before it all goes to hell for a while. Then again I was watching NASCAR online the other week and the amount of anger and animosity some people had against particular drivers was ludicrous - the chat panel was a wash of 'fans' demanding drivers they dislike to crash out at every corner. I mean I've been displeased about the odd competitor from time to time - Hamilton's completely mental 2011 season comes to mind, but don't recall actively wishing the chap to visit the scenery. Can't we all just get along - it gets worse when this aggression spills onto the track, back to NASCAR, and there has been some almighty accidents simply because of 'payback' or a general stubborn lack of respect for each other's space on track. Yet in this football nonsense that is going to be plaguing us for several months, violence towards one another is a weekly occurrence, and is almost a job requirement, along with deception, racism, greed and almost every other deplorable trait of the species' declining humanity.
On that note, time to lighten things up a bit before this, like so many other posts that came before it turns into a large and increasingly angry rant. Today, a considerable time after everyone else has done a similar thing it is time to look at how our cast of drivers has done so far at the pseudo-halfway point of the year, actual half way would have been the New Jersey GP but that disappeared after Hurricane Sandy and financial problems delayed the event until potentially 2014... if ever. I shall go through the grid in reverse order, based on the bonus points championship - because what better metric is there? I know various other entities are in the table, and to avoid this post being longer than Danica's list of non-supporters I'll stick to the 22 people that have a race seat on a Sunday afternoon.
At the end of the line
2013 hasn't been the best season for some, and fairly torrid for others languishing at this end of the table, while some drivers have been hampered by a diabolically under performing car and struggling to make any impact on the championship. Furthermore the TV directors this season seem to forget that anyone outside the top 10 exists making it difficult to hand out points for being interesting or entertaining while being invisible. But here are the lowest 6 scorers so far:
22nd place (12pts): Max Chilton
It is no great surprise to see Max in last place, Chilton has made it all the way up the development ladder through substantial backing from the same company that funds his brother Tom and the lead Chevrolet team in the WTCC. For the most part Max has been the very definition of unspectacular - with the only positive of the season is that Chilton has finished all races thus far, albeit last, and did force Maldonado to build a fort at Tabac corner in Monaco
21st place (16pts): Pastor Maldonado
Williams have not had a strong car this season, in fact is has been rather dire indeed if Rosbergs car didn't catch fire in Hungary the entire team would have no points at all this far into the season. As for Maldonado, he has hit far fewer people than normal, likely because everyone else is too fast and the Caterhams and Marussias are miles off the pace of anything. It has been a virtually anonymous season so far, so much that Pastor turned a large accident in Monaco into a spot of fort building DIY - with Chilton's help.
20th place (19pts): Valtteri Bottas
Despite being one of the most impressive rookies on the grid, including a stunning third place grid start in Canada, Valtteri finds himself at the bottom of the table, because the car is useless we barely see the Finn throughout the weekend, but if Williams can improve the car Bottas has more than enough pace and ability to start scoring points - and perhaps instigate the sort of comeback charge that scored Massa the 2012 bonus points title despite being nowhere at this point in time.
19th place (23pts) Esteban Gutierrez
Esteban has been a terrible replacement for Kamui Kobayashi, spending a lot of time in relegation in Q1 and occasionally a liability on track - which is odd because his GP3 performances were strong. But the Sauber is also not a good car this season, which prevents Gutierrez from being able to shake the stigma of being a generic under-performing pay driver. Despite leading some laps in Spain on strategy, Esteban hasn't really shown too much potential, however it is very early days.
18th place (26pts) Charles Pic
There were high hopes for Caterham this season, perhaps to challenge a team that didn't just come into being in 2010, and Pic was supposed to be the leader of that crusade as the only driver with experience in the bottom four seats. There has been flashes of speed but no spectacular results, but more often than not Pic and Caterham lead the lowest division after a spirited start to 2013 by nearest rivals Marussia.
17th place (36pts) Giedo Van Der Garde
A driver like Chilton we expected to turn up in Australia and have a fairly useless season, but it hasn't turn out that way for Van Der Garde, the Dutchman has been the only driver from the lowest set of teams to make it into Q2 and has had some really strong races, Hungary being a notable example defeating the entire bottom division on pace despite being out-qualified. On the other side Giedo has suffered from some brain-fade moments, getting in the way of everyone in Canada and attacking Maldonado (pre-fort building) in Monaco.
Moving into the mid-field
16th place (36pts) Nico Hulkenberg
Just like Bottas, Hulkenberg is a really quick driver trapped in a difficult car, early in the season the Sauber was nowhere, but unlike Gutierrez Nico has been able to force some results out of a poor vehicle. Hulkenberg is soley responsible for the entire team's points haul (in the FIA standings not this one) and has pretty much dominated proceedings over his rookie team-mate. Nico's name is presently in the mix for a potential upgrade if things move around a lot at the front of the grid.
15th place (43pts) Sergio Perez
Perez is learning that the days of one-stopping and stealing a podium are over, the McLaren isn't as tyre-friendly as the Sauber was, then again neither is the current Sauber... Sergio is trying to make the best of a poor car as so many have had to thus far in the standings, his titanic battle with Jenson in Bahrain was outstanding. But an aggressive driving style has resulted in some accident damage, usually with a rather angry Kimi - in Monaco and China.
14th place (48pts) Jean Eric Vergne
In a replica of 2012, Vergne has amassed the largest amount of points in the Torro Rosso team despite being slower on pace and generally out-qualified, and I have no idea how on earth that happens. Something that Alguersuari was very good at, magically appearing in the points from nowhere on the grid, to make things more confusing Vergne has had the worst reliability record of anyone this season with mechanical and tyre failures.
13th place (48pts) Jules Bianchi
If there was an award for rookie of the season is would certainly go to Bianchi - Alonso did a similar thing in a Minardi in 2001 and look where he is at the moment, so things look good for Jules, so much so even his car got points driving by itself in Germany. Bianchi has got the most out of the Marussia, which sadly still isn't much pace especially since Caterham have moved on a bit, but unlike Chilton Bianchi still can keep up with them and challenge to claim that 10th place in the constructors championship for the team.
12th place (58pts) Daniel Ricciardo
Has demonstrated a lot of qualifying pace in the Torro Rosso and general speed, which has put the Australian in the shop window for Webber's seat in 2014 - yet that pace doesn't always translate into a points position allowing Vergne to sweep in from nowhere and lead the team in the standings. While lacking consistency at times Ricciardo unleashed some spectacular high bonus points scoring performances but not enough to make the top 10.
11th place (60pts) Jenson Button
How the mighty have fallen, Jenson was the first ever bonus points champion in 2011 and things have just gone downhill - mostly due to the fact that the car is not very good, it has become so much of a struggle to make any progress with it. Yet Jenson, like Bianchi in many respects has made the most of the bad situation to secure some strong points finishes in what is quite a weak vehicle.
The top ten, for now
In a season full of tyre complaints and the least secret testing scandal, some drivers have actually don rather well this season and are currently in contention (mathematically Van Der Merwe in 40th place on 0.5pts could still take the title) for that all important accolade of being crowned the bonus points champion of 2013. That said, none of the previous winners have acknowledged their victory tweet at the end of the year, so maybe it isn't quite so important. Anyway, the top ten:
10th place (71pts) Mark Webber
Of all the seasons at Red Bull for the Australian, this one is going least to plan, the German bloke is winning all the time, and the only race Mark was on course to win... Vettel stole that too, so in this departing year things could be a little better. But some trickery behind the safety car in Germany carved one of the comeback drives of the season, so all is not quite lost and the decent down the table might yet be overturned.
9th place (71pts) Sebastien Vettel
Yes the little German has an unnecessary surplus of pace, and has spent races in utter dominant form, lapping so many people in Canada I was expecting blue flags - the chap has been a bit boring again - you don't get many points for being boring, some points for being ridiculously fast and destroying everyone. In the real world this is enough to build a sizeable championship lead, but in the bonus points things are a little different.
8th place (76pts) Fernando Alonso
Strangely, one of the most complete drivers on the grid has been a little inconsistent this season, and so has the Ferrari team as whole. I had to re-check the results to see if Fernando turned up to the race in Monaco, but more often than not Alonso is being Alonso - exceedingly fast but with great precision and accuracy in wheel to wheel combat, even if he is seeing a little less of it this year.
7th place (77.5pts) Felipe Massa
The 2012 bonus points champion has had a massively erratic year, so much so I've no idea where all these points have come from - from Monaco to Germany Massa was all over the place, crashing into things... the same things twice, spinning and being left behind in the races. But somehow has out-qualified Fernando from time to time leads the Spaniard by 1.5 bonus points, the 0.5 scored in the half points qualifying session in Australia.
6th place (81pts) Nico Rosberg
I, you and pretty much everyone else expected Mercedes to be nowhere this season, and even more of us expected Nico to be hammered by Lewis, but it hasn't happened quite like that. Aside from Vettel, Nico has won the most races this season, even though Monaco was won at the slowest possible speed. However the pace is falling away and some average races have cost Nico some valuable bonus points.
5th place (89pts) Lewis Hamilton
They said he was mad, yet the move is paying off especially considering where McLaren are, Hamilton had contributed to a string of Mercedes pole positions, because the car only likes to work on Saturdays, until Hungary that was when a win was added to the list. Consistently gaining performance out of the car where possible and remains rather fast.
4th place (97pts) Adrian Sutil
On a return from making no end of friends in a bar in China Sutil has had a strong return to the series, the early part of the season was blighted by bad luck, ran into by Gutierrez and Massa in China and Malaysia followed by pit problems and reliability. Yet the German lead a lot of the opening race of the season and has scored consistent points in what is a mid-field car - albeit the best mid-field car.
3rd place (109pts) Romain Grosjean
Romain has scored most of these points from being exciting and stringing together some excellent performances. Except Monaco where he crashed into everything and everyone. There is a lot of speed in the Lotus driver, scoring front row grid starts and almost challenging for the win in Germany had the safety car not caused some bother. Displayed some great racing this season - passing Massa on the outside in Hungary was marvellous even thought the powers that be thought it was illegal, just needs to cut down on hitting people. Leading the penalties championship is not an ideal accolade.
2nd place (111pts) Kimi Raikkonen
Almost took the 2012 title before losing it to Massa in the final race, Raikkonen is having another imperiously consistent season, always finishing, always in the points - a run almost cancelled by one of the collisions with Perez. Despite often starting down the order Raikkonen through tyre conservation and spectacular passing is racking up the podiums left right and centre... once, and is presently Vettel's closest challenger.
1st place (111pts) Paul Di Resta
The angry Scotsman who complains to the team about everything and constantly looks for a way out has been doing rather well despite a confusing demeanour. Paul has suffered a string of qualifying disasters but on each occasion (barring Hungary) has powered through the field and has passed more cars than anyone else this season. That is what the bonus points championship is all about, people who do exciting things, passing round the outside of St Devote is mental and then to do it twice, including on a Ferrari that is magnetically atraccted to crashing there sums up the season Di Resta has had. But the change in tyre construction has harmed team pace, so that championship lead is looking a little tenuous right now.
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