The successes and failures of Suzuka

The tops

Sebastian Vettel
The pilot Red Bull is back ! After several hesitant races, several errors at the start and in the race, Baby Schumi came back to the forefront. Starting from pole, the Red Bull driver got off to a good start this time and was able to lead the race from start to finish, despite a pressing Mark Webber. Sebastian Vettel returns to the forefront and above all to second place in the general classification of the World Championship. Already effective at the end of last season, Vettel could end this season with a bang.

Mark Webber
Leader of the World Championship, the Australian was able to score big points in order to stay the course and increase his lead over his runner-up, Fernando Alonso, joined by Sebastian Vettel. Although he has not won since the Hungarian Grand Prix, Mark Webber is consistent, with three podiums in four races. Sunday, at Suzuka, he did not seek to attack Sebastian Vettel for victory but consolidated his leadership position.

Fernando Alonso
Second in the World Championship, Fernando Alonso is on a good run. Winner at Monza and Singapore, he achieved his third consecutive podium, his fifth in six races. The Spaniard makes up for a bad start to the summer and continues his conquest of a third title. Three races from the end of the season, the driver Ferrari is more motivated than ever.

Kamui Kobayashi
The Japanese, who impressed on his debut in F1 at the end of 2009, regained all its enthusiasm this Sunday. In front of his supporters, the Sauber driver shone and overtook serious customers, notably his new teammate, Nick Heidfeld, to finish seventh. Sometimes discreet, the young Japanese knows how to make a reputation through this kind of feat.

Lotus Racing
The team achieved its best performance of the season, avoiding pitfalls and taking advantage of numerous retirements. Twelfth and thirteenth, Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli climb the hierarchy thanks to their regularity and the growing reliability of the T127.

The flops

Renault F1 Team
If the team has experienced other frustrating races, this Japanese Grand Prix should be placed at the top of its unfinished works. And yet, the very good qualifying of Robert Kubica, third on the grid, could give hope for a good race. Especially since at the start of the race, the Pole and Vitaly Petrov got off to excellent starts. The Russian even got off to a “too good” start according to Eric Boullier, since he went to touch Nico Hulkenberg before crashing his R30 into the wall. As for Robert Kubica, second behind Sebastian Vettel, he had to retire under safety car conditions, after losing a wheel. Big disappointment for the Pole who could aim for the podium.

Lewis Hamilton
It wasn?t the Briton?s weekend, and it?s not his best period of the season. After his retirements at Monza and Singapore, the driver McLaren experienced another difficult weekend: an accident during free practice 1, a second session reduced to ten minutes, a third session truncated by rain, five penalty places on the starting grid and, finally, a box of Faulty gears ruined his weekend. With all these worries, fifth place in the Japanese GP is ultimately a good performance. But the title is moving away?

Lucas di Grassi
The Brazilian did not start the race, after making a serious mistake in the famous “130R” during his grid lap. Without providing an explanation for this curious fault, the former Renault driver regrets not having been able to race. Virgin claims to have detected “no anomaly” on its car.