2012 was epic, but something is still missing...

Personally I think Vettel, Alonso and Hamilton were all deserving of the title this season but it's a team sport and Red Bull/Vettel were the best overall team,

As far as the thread subject is concerned, Alonso and Hamilton have gone out of their way recently to praise each other whilst simultaneously criticising Vettel.
It hasn't quite reached the level of Prost/Senna but we could see more of it next year, although I suspect Hamilton will be an interested onlooker and won't feature much in any media driven baiting.
 
What if, as seems quite likely, Alonso and Vettel are again vying for the title as they near the climax of the 2013 season? If things are close we could see a few fireworks there as tensions on both sides begin to rise, especially if the red team looks like just missing out yet again.
 
I'm not sure why most are of the opinion that next year's title will be fought between Vettel and Alonso. If you consider what the pattern has been over the last 3 years it looks more like the first half of 2012 was the blip in Red Buull's consistant dominance rather than the norm.
Ferrari have since 2008 failed to produce a consistantly competitive car and McLaren just can't get their act togeether on a regular basis. If anything it looks more likely to me that the Vettel-Red Bull combination will next year revert to its pattern of undisputed dominance of the sport, a la 2011.
 
Incubus I wrote this a few months back about who's the blame for Ferrari's performance dip since 2008 http://cliptheapex.com/threads/massa-most-likely-staying-but-who-should-be-out-at-ferrari.5562/

You could be right about the Red Bull dominance again, but I think the way the regulations are moving to dethrone Red Bull, we'll see a very similar championship to 2012. Red Bull may be a step ahead as usual, but I expect Ferrari's performance to jump, Lotus to jump, and McLaren to also be very good, but will be hurt by their driver lineup. 2014 will be wide open as well..
 
I'm not sure that hatred is actually required; if none exists, fans will just invent it anyway.

The one-on-one rivalries of the past were, to a large extent, a product of the lack of overall competitiveness of the field. This season, the competitive order was subject to great fluctuation, throwing more than half of the field into battling for the top five positions at various points throughout the year. It was never the case (well, until Interlagos) that Vettel only had Alonso to worry about, nor vice versa, and from my perspective, long may it continue. This way, we get some interesting insights into how drivers deal with their various rivals, such as how Vettel felt comfortable bullying Button at Abu Dhabi, yet gave Webber a wide berth at the start in Brazil.
 
I like the current points format as it mixes the previous two types very well - it rewards consistency yet gives a just reward for race victories.
 
Very true. I think points for qualli would only really work in a spec series or a heat format, thinking further. The sprint Kart series I race in has qualifying for pre-final grid positions and then a pre-final at half the points of the main final which follows.
 
Knockout qualifying, for the most part, has helped people go for it, but if 1 or 2 points were on the line, qualifying would be even more thrilling and I don't think we'd see anyone sit out round 3 and just accept 10th place. Could be wrong, but it would make a good show great
 
I'm not against the idea of point(s) for pole, but I don't think it would get more people out of the pits as the drivers who don't set a competitive lap don't go out because they think they haven't got much hope of getting much higher than 10th.
 
The problem with that is that Red Bull's strategy for winning races has been to stick it on pole an dissappear, albeit less successful for most of this season. That would just increase thier dominance further. That said, at least Lewis and Seb would both have taken home some points after having both retired from the lead on various race weekends this season.
 
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