Shame about race and championship result but a fantastic edge-of-the-seat finale to the season

A great race, that has left me not £1,000 better off (based on a pre-season bet I made on Alonso winning the championship)..

Made the whole race more exciting for me though

I can't make this play on my PC.

Race Stewards Insist thet Vettel Overtake was made under Red yellow Flags - Planet F1

What role do stewards have in F1 anyway?



Nice to see Massa in such top form.

What a fantastic race. I was just mentioning to my brother right before Di Resta's crash that the two flat out kinks before the start finish line are notoriously tretcherous in the wet and 'bang!'. Not the way we wanted the race to finish, but again...what a fantastic race!

Hulkenberg's performance was immense, right up the point where he oversteered into Hamilton. Lewis can count himself unlucky, but you do have to ask the question that would Jenson Button have put himself in that same vulnerable position; toughing it out on the outside of a wet corner with a charging youngster desperate for his first win diving up the inside off line? Sometimes, Lewis doesn't help himself and puts himself in risky situations (think back to Valencia this year and his altercation with Maldonado). I still felt kinda sorry for Lewis though. Not least because it meant that Mclaren didn't claim second in the contructors. I was VERY happy to see Jenson win though!

I really did think that Vettel was finished when he fell victim to the predicted opening lap turn 4 chaos. I can't believe how lucky he was that his Red Bull survived two big hits. If I were him, I'd ask for both rear uprights to his car and hang them up for posterity. With no straightline speed, a damaged floor, a wrong pit stop call and no radio, I doff my cap to him for handling the whole situation fantastically well. He's a deserving triple world champion...

...but not as much as Alonso. I never thought I'd see the day, when I'd say that I'm gutted for Alonso not taking the championship. But I think he deserved the championship head and shoulders more than anyone else this season. What he did this season is amazing and he is rightly proud of his achievements. In his interview, he made a very good point that he's gained a lot more repect and recognition from this year. He's certainly gone up in my estimation and I thought he was brilliant before. It must be said that Massa drove brilliantly today too. It will be interesting to see how he carries his late season form into 2013 and if it starts to cause friction with Alonso. If there is one area where Alonso has a weakness, its that he just cannot handle it when a team mate is beating him.

Also, what an amazing result for Caterham to leapfrog past Marussia! Although it has to be said that Caterham have underperformed considering what they have at their disposal compared to Marussia. They have a bigger budget, better facilities, a Red Bull drivetrain (including KERS) yet they only just scraped past at the very last.

A great drive from Jenson. Yet again proving that he's the master of changeable conditions where a delicate feel for grip is needed. It will have felt good to have been 40sec up the road from Lewis in their final race as team mates and it can't be underestimated the boost that taking the final win into winter has on a team. Bodes well for Jenson next year.

It was very sad to see the departure of Jake Humphrey from our F1 screens. Watching the F1 Forum today really showed the chemistry that he, DC and EJ have built up over the years and his leaving will be a big loss. Lee McKenzie is a worthy replacement, but the sense of cameraderie won't be there.

Finally, the loss of all the races being shown live on the BBC wasn't as much of an issue as I thought it would be. I've still loved the season and didn't think I missed out on much. I've watched a couple of the live races on Sky and their punditry is just so boring (Brundle and Davidson excepted). They also broadcast for so long that you actually feel like you've suffered from F1 over exposure and thats coming from me - a diehard F1 nut. The Sky F1 website is a good place for post race stuff though.

What a great finale to a fantastic season. March 17th can't come around soon enough.

Its going to be a long four months.

The only real annoyance about the highlights races was the BBC's insistence on giving the results on news programs *before* they showed the race - usually without warning. I complained to the Beeb about it, but got 'we have to give the news blah blah blah' in return.

Yeah, its a pain in the arse when that happens. Fortunately I've gotten into the habit of avoiding all news broadcasts on those Sundays when a race isn't live on BBC.

Unfortunately, I then take a quick look on Facebook to see whats happening and forget I've subscribed to various F1 sites on there.

Try this link instead.

Thanks - that one works fine.
I guess that spurious green between the yellows could be a bit confusing.

Hmm. So that's a Georgie... that dress made out of cloth or paint?

Oh, um, where was I? Ah, yes. He passed the yellow before the overtake. Naughty boy. Retrospective two place drop?

What's Vettel on about with the "dirty tricks" comment? Why can't he just be happy in victory? I can't stand that man

Thanks Dennis, I've watched that video several times now and i still havn't seen any race incidents........ who's that laidee in the white dres? not Murray Walker that's for sure

I think the whole incident is just sour grapes fro the Vettel haters really. He had a fantastic day given the circumstances. One of the best races of the season IMO fab track, fab race, fab ending to the season. Unlucky for Lewis, you are right Dennis not many other drivers would have put themselves in that position - defending the lead of an F1 one race, except it should be "not many driver *could* have put themselves in that position"

Hamilton shouldnt've been in that position anyway as Hulkenburg had previously been 40 seconds ahead of him .......

Don't think I agree with that, but I do see where you're coming from. Lewis lives and dies on his instincts on track. Sometimes it works, but sometimes it lands him in trouble where a more measured response would be better.

With the Hulk incident, there were a load of laps still left to run. Lewis should have sized up the situation, conceded the corner and lived to carry on the fight. To coin the oft used phrase; to finish first, first you have to finish.

Still, its this combative nature which makes Lewis such a great driver to watch and to a large extent, defines him. I'm still more of a Jenson fan though.

Also, I've just read this great blog post from Jake Humphrey. Check it out.

I don't think you can separate the driver from how he drives. Lewis was minding his own business and shouldn't have been hit by Hulk - the stewards agreed. It's part of what makes Lewis more successful than Jenson - as much as I admire Jenson's driving style.

Excellent blog, although I'm gutted he's leaving F1

I liked his friendly, knowledgeable and honest comments and enjoyed his presenting for F1.

Jake was my second pleasure to look at and listen to, with the F1 cars being first of course

You up for the job now then Dennis?

+1 for that . Good luck to Jake!

+ 1 more. He drew a perfect balance.
What will the BBC be doing next year with the coverage?

Is Lee MacKenzie taking over from Jake?

That's what I've read.

Hope he isn't coming to Sky!

Seems to be BT Vision Premier league coverage.

It seems that the next few years' BBC coverage will be the same as this year - half live races, and half highlights.

Depends what you mean by successful. Over the three years they've been team mates, Jenson has outscored Lewis in overall points.

Lewis is the better qualifier, but Jenson's race craft and ability to see the bigger picture is superior IMO. His inability to deal with a less than perfect car is very frustrating sometimes though. But if the car is exactly to his liking, I don't think there is anyone faster on the grid.

Yeah, I'm gutted that Jake Humprey is leaving the F1 coverage too. He was nothing short of brilliant.

Agree that Jenson is fantastic in a good car. Lewis is far more exciting and never seems to give up which, I get the sense, Jenson does. My own driving style is, apparently, far more out of the Jenson school of motoring than the Lewis school (obviously leagues and leagues below). Lewis takes the car by the scruff of the neck - Jenson strokes it

And when he strokes it, it purrs.

Jenson is the better driver; Lewis may be the better racer. But I think Jenson is from the Damon Hill school of gentlemen drivers; Lewis is more of a Schumacher.

But both have been world champions.

Looks like Ferrari may be going to encourage the FIA to look again at Vettel's Pass "under yellows" of Vergne. Sounds as though there's enough doubt about the absence of a marshall's flag to enable the FIA to let it lie. We'll see...

Looks like they need to find footage of a man waving a green flag by Friday.

Overturning the result at this late stage is wrong IMO. Fingers have been wagged, and Vettel spent a good period after the incident being told to "slow down".

If the marshals had acted decisively at the time I'm sure Vettel could have pulled another place.

I think the absence of footage of the marshalling post drives a coach and horses (or at least a RB8) through any case for penalising Vettel. But it won't stop Ferrari trying. I hope they find footage in a way, as Skinflint says, it's finished, get over it.

We're now (from a validity of the championship perspective) in a lose lose situation. Whatever happens it will be tainted either by 'he clearly passed under yellows, it's just one rule for Vettel/Red Bull and a different one for everyone else' or 'Alonso only won it because Ferrari appealed it's just one rule for Alonso/Ferrari and a different one for everyone else'.

For what it's worth, the video I watched does seem to show him passing under yellows, therefore he should be penalised (if evidence of a green flag can't be produced). The doubts around the existence of a green flag or not are likely to cause this to rumble on though!