I pose the question: Which constructor would you call the 'best' after 7 races? You could also answer: Which team is best poised to win the championship?
If we look only at points, we would see:
I will do a brief synopsis of my own opinions of the team thus far. Please remember I haven't seen all of the GP's.. So feel free to constructively criticize and fill in any gaps.
Red Bull: Leading the constructors due to consistency from both drivers, a la: the re-emergence of Webber. The enormous gap between Vettel and Webber is much narrower for 2012. And thus I feel this is the reason for leading the standings right now. Their drivers have been the most consistent throughout the championship. As for the car: the RB8 was touted by everyone under the sun to be the runaway favourite for 2012. Their pace looked promising in pre-season testing. But the gaps seemed much closer than pre-season testing in 2011. The car looked 'planted' according to most F1 experts in the pre-season. But Australia gave us a different picture than we became accustomed to seeing through 2011. McLaren 1-3, with Seb splitting the McLaren duo. What was even more damning to RB was their qualifying ace, Vettel, qualifying only P6. Had the man touted to see 'air passing over the cars' made an error? Or was the EBD that important to the RB6 and RB7 and its success? We may never know the true answer. But Red Bull have proved competitive at just about every grand prix. And in terms of development, are only second to Ferrari IMO.
McLaren-Mercedes: Could the team which was 'the best of the rest' in 2011 make that leap forward in 2012 to deliver another championship to either of their WDC pilots? Would Jenson become the leader of the McLaren team? Would Lewis decide to leave his 'racing home' for another team after the season? Would Lewis re-emerge as the 'leader' of the McLaren team? Could McLaren tidy up costly mistakes for the season? The list of questions could go on and on. But a lot of questions were put to rest when the fuel came out of the cars for the first time in 2012. McLaren locked out the front row. And if not for Petrov's Caterham being parked along the start-finish straight: likely would have came home 1-2 in the race. A near perfect start to making the step forward. But what we have seen since has been anything but perfect. Excluding Hamilton's drive in Canada where he looked the best pilot. Many were questioning McLaren's development prior to Canada. But Hamilton showed that a car which normally excels in cooler weather, could get the job done in a variety of conditions. It is hard to currently judge just how good this 2012 challenger really is with the vastly underperforming Jenson Button. I'm sure he can't wait for Valencia to put the last two races behind him. McLaren need to tidy up pit mistakes and poor calls from the pit wall. But a very good argument could be made that they indeed have a car and driver ready and willing to take the title.
Lotus-Renault: For me, the surprise of 2012. Who would have thought that a team aiming for 5th place in the constructors could be disappointed with 3rd place? Lotus have looked strong since the E20 started testing in Jerez. Despite having to sit out 4 days of pre-season testing in Barcelona: the E20 is delivering consistent podiums. One only wonders how many more points this team could have if not for Grosjean crashing out 3 / 7 races. Despite all of the positives surrounding this resurgent team: one question looms large. Can Lotus improve their qualifying? Especially for the Finn who has struggled to match the pace of his teammate in qualifying? Lotus could very well have won three races this year (Bahrain, Barcelona & Canada) if their qualifying was stronger. Their pace on Sunday's has been enough to claim the top step of the podium. But their starting positions have kept them from achieving this result, along with strategies, three missed oppurtunities for the team now. Their development seems to be strong enough to continue to fight for more podiums. And Lotus now claim they have found a solution to their qualifying woes. Let's wait and see. If they stay consistent: they could surprise the F1 world with a world title...
Ferrari: What a turn-around. My mind can not shed the sight of the poorly balanced Ferrari in FP in Australia. The car looked nearly un-driveable when approaching the limit. Their pace was easily 1s / lap off that of the front runners. And 6 races later Ferrari had a very realistic chance to claim victory in the dry. The true indicator, at least for me, that this car has improved immensely is the pace of Massa. Felipe failed to make it to Q3 in any of the first 5 GP's. He has qualified P7 (Monaco) and P6 (Canada), respectively, in the last two races. Ferrari have clearly figured out the most about their car since inception. Is this down to understanding the balance of the car? Or more down to upgrades? It's a mixture of both in my opinion due to the creation of such a radical design and starting from scratch. But give Tombazis credit for taking such a risk. If this risk failed, surely his flesh and bones would have been left to the wolves. But he is looking more like a genius day by day. Ferrari have easily improved their car the most. But I still do not think it is worthy of a championship. But if any man is up to the task of winning the WDC without the best car: it's Alonso.
Mercedes:
. I just can't figure this team out. Their season started in a very secretive manner. With the team making the decision to skip Jerez testing to 'finish' their 2012 challenger. Were they trying to hide a special trick for 2012? We have since found out that they were indeed: the D-DRS (double). Their expectation was to solidify themselves as third best in the constructors and fight for race wins. They have checked one of the two boxes. Out of the gate: their pace looked very promising. But Australia also revealed a theme that Schumacher can not seem to shed: bad-luck. Their goal of achieving race victory came early. By the third GP. With Rosberg dominating the field. And many crediting their DDRS for the pace advantage. I don't know what conclusion to draw on this team. Rosberg is scoring consistent points. Has two podiums to his name. But Schumacher can not find any luck. This team should clearly have more points than it currently does. The pace seems to be there. I can only conclude that Mercedes failed to deliver on their promise to be consistent with the Pirelli tires. Of all the cars that seem temperature sensitive for its tires: the Mercedes could take the award.. And because of this, I don't think they will finish 3rd in the constructors let alone fight for a championship..
My tip at the beginning of the season was McLaren. Now it's Red Bull, their drivers have been the most consistent by far, and both are in the championship hunt being only 3 and 9 point behind the leader Lewis Hamilton.
If we look only at points, we would see:
Red Bull: 164
McLaren: 133
Lotus: 108
Ferrari: 97
Mercedes: 69
Sauber: 58
Williams: 44
I will do a brief synopsis of my own opinions of the team thus far. Please remember I haven't seen all of the GP's.. So feel free to constructively criticize and fill in any gaps.
Red Bull: Leading the constructors due to consistency from both drivers, a la: the re-emergence of Webber. The enormous gap between Vettel and Webber is much narrower for 2012. And thus I feel this is the reason for leading the standings right now. Their drivers have been the most consistent throughout the championship. As for the car: the RB8 was touted by everyone under the sun to be the runaway favourite for 2012. Their pace looked promising in pre-season testing. But the gaps seemed much closer than pre-season testing in 2011. The car looked 'planted' according to most F1 experts in the pre-season. But Australia gave us a different picture than we became accustomed to seeing through 2011. McLaren 1-3, with Seb splitting the McLaren duo. What was even more damning to RB was their qualifying ace, Vettel, qualifying only P6. Had the man touted to see 'air passing over the cars' made an error? Or was the EBD that important to the RB6 and RB7 and its success? We may never know the true answer. But Red Bull have proved competitive at just about every grand prix. And in terms of development, are only second to Ferrari IMO.
McLaren-Mercedes: Could the team which was 'the best of the rest' in 2011 make that leap forward in 2012 to deliver another championship to either of their WDC pilots? Would Jenson become the leader of the McLaren team? Would Lewis decide to leave his 'racing home' for another team after the season? Would Lewis re-emerge as the 'leader' of the McLaren team? Could McLaren tidy up costly mistakes for the season? The list of questions could go on and on. But a lot of questions were put to rest when the fuel came out of the cars for the first time in 2012. McLaren locked out the front row. And if not for Petrov's Caterham being parked along the start-finish straight: likely would have came home 1-2 in the race. A near perfect start to making the step forward. But what we have seen since has been anything but perfect. Excluding Hamilton's drive in Canada where he looked the best pilot. Many were questioning McLaren's development prior to Canada. But Hamilton showed that a car which normally excels in cooler weather, could get the job done in a variety of conditions. It is hard to currently judge just how good this 2012 challenger really is with the vastly underperforming Jenson Button. I'm sure he can't wait for Valencia to put the last two races behind him. McLaren need to tidy up pit mistakes and poor calls from the pit wall. But a very good argument could be made that they indeed have a car and driver ready and willing to take the title.
Lotus-Renault: For me, the surprise of 2012. Who would have thought that a team aiming for 5th place in the constructors could be disappointed with 3rd place? Lotus have looked strong since the E20 started testing in Jerez. Despite having to sit out 4 days of pre-season testing in Barcelona: the E20 is delivering consistent podiums. One only wonders how many more points this team could have if not for Grosjean crashing out 3 / 7 races. Despite all of the positives surrounding this resurgent team: one question looms large. Can Lotus improve their qualifying? Especially for the Finn who has struggled to match the pace of his teammate in qualifying? Lotus could very well have won three races this year (Bahrain, Barcelona & Canada) if their qualifying was stronger. Their pace on Sunday's has been enough to claim the top step of the podium. But their starting positions have kept them from achieving this result, along with strategies, three missed oppurtunities for the team now. Their development seems to be strong enough to continue to fight for more podiums. And Lotus now claim they have found a solution to their qualifying woes. Let's wait and see. If they stay consistent: they could surprise the F1 world with a world title...
Ferrari: What a turn-around. My mind can not shed the sight of the poorly balanced Ferrari in FP in Australia. The car looked nearly un-driveable when approaching the limit. Their pace was easily 1s / lap off that of the front runners. And 6 races later Ferrari had a very realistic chance to claim victory in the dry. The true indicator, at least for me, that this car has improved immensely is the pace of Massa. Felipe failed to make it to Q3 in any of the first 5 GP's. He has qualified P7 (Monaco) and P6 (Canada), respectively, in the last two races. Ferrari have clearly figured out the most about their car since inception. Is this down to understanding the balance of the car? Or more down to upgrades? It's a mixture of both in my opinion due to the creation of such a radical design and starting from scratch. But give Tombazis credit for taking such a risk. If this risk failed, surely his flesh and bones would have been left to the wolves. But he is looking more like a genius day by day. Ferrari have easily improved their car the most. But I still do not think it is worthy of a championship. But if any man is up to the task of winning the WDC without the best car: it's Alonso.
Mercedes:
My tip at the beginning of the season was McLaren. Now it's Red Bull, their drivers have been the most consistent by far, and both are in the championship hunt being only 3 and 9 point behind the leader Lewis Hamilton.
oh well C'est la vie as they say in France..
