Brazilian Grand Prix Review

Much will be written and said about Alonso's performance throughout the season, but the burning question will be, has the man from Oviedo landed the title by default? Have McLaren gifted it to him on a plate? Has he been the best driver this season? Does he deserve it? These are the seeds of doubt that Ron Dennis, in full sour grapes mode despite his best efforts to say that it's not, have been trying to sow. And on any closer inspection, it becomes clear that Alonso has very much deserved his achievement.

What is the definition of the 'best driver' over a season? The man who drives the best car? The man who takes the most wins throughout the year? Or the man who has clearly maximised his potential throughout the whole season? We think the latter. On one hand, it is true that McLaren have not allowed Raikkonen to maximise his or the silver car's potential all season; the Finn's comparatively massive DNF rate and their inability to bridge a 20-ish point gap to Alonso since early in the season is testament to that.

But it hasn't just been a matter of Renault being more reliable. On the other hand Alonso himself has also been far less error-prone than Raikkonen. They don't have to be big mistakes, it just has to be a slide here, a locked brake there. Take qualifying in Brazil as a microcosm. Yes, Alonso had a lighter fuel load, but he banged in a perfect lap and took pole. By his own account Kimi lost around 0.7s at the first corner when he locked up. The potential was there, but Raikkonen and McLaren were not able to take advantage.

That is what maximising his potential is all about. When he could have beaten a McLaren he has set out clinically to do so; if the win has been there for the taking, he has taken it as well. Bear in mind that Alonso and Raikkonen are equal on 6 wins each, and on Montoya's current form, Kimi may not necessarily add to that number. Alonso has had his share of leading the pack, he hasn't won the title on minor points alone. Even on the pre-2003 points system he would still be leading the title by 18 points at this stage.

13 podium finishes in 17 races, a 4th in Monaco where he could have done no better on the day, that DNS at Indy, one major mistake in Canada and an error of judgment in Hungary - it all represents a champagne quality season of near-Schumacher proportions. In so doing he has also put Giancarlo Fisichella in the shade, and silenced those (including our site author) who thought Fisi would get the upper hand, although the reliability of the second Renault hasn't been sterling either.

It is the culmination of a meteoric rise. His victory at Spa in F3000 as a teenager marked him as a man of immense talent, which his debut F1 season for Minardi in 2001 confirmed. Ironically, Raikkonen and Montoya may have stolen the rookie headlines that year, but Alonso himself had been brilliant. A year out as Renault tester in 2002 did not dampen his skills, and his awesome 2003, his first season up the front, saw F1 Rejects and F1 Racing's reader-voted awards both crown him as the driver of the year.

Finally, Fernando's title is also a vindication. It proves right those who saw his talent and have given him the opportunities over the years, from Adrian Campos who picked him to drive for his Formula Nissan team in 1999, to Paul Stoddart who agreed to hand him his F1 debut in 2001, and to Flavio Briatore who has nurtured him throughout. A word also for Pat Symonds, who has stuck with Benetton/Renault in the years since the heady Schumacher days of the mid-90s; how he deserves the taste of success again.

The consolation for McLaren is that they have now taken the lead in the constructors' championship and are poised to take that out, which would be well-deserved and a fair result given that the MP4/20 is undoubtedly the fastest package on the track. The question is, which McLaren driver will lead the way in the remaining two races? Despite it being JPM's third win of 2005, it was his first in a genuine head-to-head battle against his team-mate, and it could mark a significant turning point.

When he turns it on, Kimi may still be slightly faster over a single lap, but after a patchy first half of the year Juan-Pablo is now generally able to match his team-mate's pace and has been impressively consistent in this second half. Raikkonen had the strategy to beat Montoya here, but he was unable to do so. Some said that JPM's defeat of Kimi at Interlagos last year would be a psychological blow heading into this season. That proved not to be the case, but perhaps this year's Brazil win may indeed turn out to be telling.

After a series of dismal races since Hungary, Ferrari were on points-scoring form at Interlagos, and it was good to see Ross Brawn come out, eat some humble pie, and admit what people have been suspecting - that although Bridgestone have been diabolical this year, the F2005 hasn't been up to scratch aerodynamically either. That is not to absolve their tyre supplier though; the Bridgestones were wearing so quickly here, how can Williams and probably Toyota believe that they'll get their act together by '06?

There's no doubt that Maranello is in full look-to-2006 mode though. After two horror races for chief rivals Toyota, 3rd in the constructors' title is fairly safe. Michael Schumacher, though, is a sitting duck and will lose 3rd in the drivers' battle to Montoya. He was making all the right stoical noises about congratulating Alonso, but you can just sense his desire to fight back. He must realise now that the 'next generation' has well and truly arrived; he must be hankering for '06 to see if he can post one last stand.

Unless BAR turn into race-winners next year, Rubens Barrichello has had his last chance to record that much-desired home victory - in fact, given Ferrari's form this season, he had that last chance last year! Once again he was whingeing, but instead of abstractly blaming mechanical gremlins or such like, he slammed his mechanics for incorrectly pressurising his tyres before qualifying, so that he fell behind Michael and was stuck in the lower points all race. In his mind already, Rubens has left the building.

Button will now of course be staying with the Brackley team for 2006. Frank Williams didn't surrender his contractual rights; Jenson simply paid him out, apparently out of his own pocket. Rumour has it that he has also signed a handsome deal to stay with BAR for five years. Why any driver would commit themselves to a team for that length of time is a mystery, but then again, it is Jenson Button after all, and he'll find a way to wriggle out of that contract should he feel like changing teams for 2007 ...

Takuma Sato could do little on a one-stop strategy coming from the back of the grid, having copped his penalty for hitting Schumi at Spa, and then a second penalty for changing to the supposedly Suzuka special engine. Another mystery, that - if it is a special engine for Suzuka, why already load it with miles in Brazil? Taku is of course left out in the cold for '06. Midland or Red Bull Minardi are hardly alluring destinations. And on the strength of this season, perhaps it's time for someone else to get an F1 seat.

Toyota left their form across the Atlantic; they just didn't get it together this weekend. Admittedly they blamed Michelin for supplying dud tyres. If so, was it a case of a French cold shoulder as Toyota seek to sign with Bridgestone for next year? The 17-point gap to Ferrari now looks too great to overcome. Ralf has had a quite solid second half of the year, and it was another decent effort to get into the points. In the last twelve races he has actually outscored Jarno Trulli 24 to 17.

Over at Red Bull, it was another high point in their roller-coaster season when Christian Klien, with an injection of confidence now that he will see out the season, put in a barnstorming qualifying lap to start 6th. It was arguably his best qualifying effort to date, not in terms of the position but in terms of the quality and speed of the lap. He was on slightly lower fuel than his direct rivals, but one could not simply attribute his time to that. On this year's showing, Christian clearly deserves his place in F1.

He pitted earlier than Barrichello and Ralf at his first and second stops respectively, and lost out to both, even though there was only a lap or two in it, which was unfortunate. It was a fine drive from the young Austrian, which should have been rewarded with points. Especially when he had so completely outshone David Coulthard, a former winner at Interlagos, whose race ended with a silly start-line collision when he hit Antonio Pizzonia's Williams and spun the Brazilian into the other Williams of Mark Webber.

At first there was a gap between the two blue and white cars which DC could legitimately aim for, but as Mark leaned to his right and Antonio started going left that space was disappearing fast. In hindsight, a man of David's experience should have known when it was time to back out and lift off. It was a somewhat embarrassing mistake by the Scot, coming not long after he had accused Webber of being a "hooligan" in the way he drove. Clearly DC also puts his nosecone where angels fear to tread.

REJECT OF THE RACE
Monteiro's Toyota Engine
Powerplant failure ends a record run of finishes

The incident was not helped by the fact that the Australian's getaway off the line had once again been mediocre, and he leaned right to defend his place. He must cut a lonely figure at the moment. A year ago he was getting rave reviews and was Williams' new hope. The work ethic still impresses, but a so-so year on the track means he can no longer be the darling of the team, or the paddock. His big-talking out-spokenness has now also seen him voted out of the directorship of the Grand Prix Drivers Association.

Williams may already be looking to 2006, but it's an increasingly forlorn-looking squad. Not only has Webber's stocks fallen, Nick Heidfeld is clearly on the outer. The German has signed for BMW next year, and given the strained relationships between Munich and Grove, Williams probably wouldn't want him back in the car. His training accident injury gives all involved the chance to umm and arr, and have to excuse to let someone else drive the last two races of the year.

That man has been confirmed as Pizzonia, although the Brazilian has done little since a good run at Monza to suggest that he should be integral to Williams' future plans. The talk is that Nico Rosberg is in the frame for the seat next year, in which case, why not put him in the car for the last two races? That Suzuka and Shanghai will be new tracks to him is hardly a good reason. Pizzonia hasn't driven Shanghai before either. Besides, if Rosberg will get the drive in 2006, why not give him a taste of these two tracks now?

Down Sauber way, Felipe Massa did his best in front of his home crowd, in his last comparatively pressure-free Brazilian GP before he turns up next year in red, but he was always going to be at an disadvantage in making early pit stops. Jacques Villeneuve endured another forgettable race in a largely forgettable year. After a Parc Ferme infringement put him to the back of the grid, a lack of straight-line speed hindered his progress. He took an agonisingly long time just to pass Robert Doornbos' Minardi.

Doornbos and Monteiro were two of the stars before the race. The Dutchman was superb in Friday free practice, but a spin in qualifying blotted his copybook. Monteiro was brilliant in out-qualifying both Williams, but a Toyota engine failure in his Jordan saw him record his first DNF all year, breaking his perfect finishing record so far. For putting an end to what has been a quite remarkable and impressive streak, we give Monteiro's Toyota engine the 'Reject of the Race' award this time around.

As Monteiro has grown in stature to become the undoubted rookie of the year, so he has left Narain Karthikeyan in the shade of increasing anonymity. The hype surrounding the Indian has well and truly dissipated. Likewise, some of Doornbos' recent showings have made Christijan Albers look mediocre, although it's Albers who may grab a Midland seat next year. That would seem a trifle unfair. At this stage, Doornbos is the man who looks much more like he deserves a seat in F1.