Red Bull and McLaren are separated by just 1 point in an epic battle
for the championship this season while their drivers and Fernando Alonso
are locked in their own title fight. Yet there is one fight away from
the spotlight which carries its own intrigue involving Lotus, Virgin and
HRT. Yes they all haven't scored this season but there is still
something to fight for.
Let me explain, if teams or
drivers find themselves equal on points then countback decides who is
ahead. This usually means who has won the most races. However countback
keeps going down the positions until it separates the positions in the
standings. Lotus find themselves best of the new teams in 10th after a
best finish of 13th in Australia whilst HRT's 14th in Monaco means
Virgin Racing are rooted to the bottom of the championship.
This
is important for all the teams as it is the team standings that decide
the prize money awarded at the end of each season. There is also plenty
of competitive edge between the new teams as well as the rivalry between
airline CEO's Tony Fernandes and Richard Branson. So can Lotus maintain
hold off their rivals and achieve their main objective of 2010? Lets
look at the remaining races which may act as both opportunities and
threats.
Monza this weekend is set to be sunny and dry
so really it will be hard for either HRT or Virgin to get the minimum of
12th place required to move forward in the championship. The only
factor would be the potential of chaos at the chicane on lap 1 but apart
from that it will be very unlikely.
Singapore could
well present a decent chance. It is a very long race, the 2009 event was
over 116 minutes long, and has proved quite an attrition event. The
safety car has appeared 3 times in 2 races there so is another factor.
Rain has never occurred during 6 days of F1 action at the venue but when
it rains in Singapore it can be very heavy so on a street circuit under
lights this would be quite a challenge for all the teams. Certainly a
chance for a surprise result here.
The Asian races in
Japan and Korea should be both normalised though Japan has had some
horrible weather in the past and Korea seems to be taking a heavy hit
from storms recently. Then we come to Brazil which will probably be the
last realistic chance to get points in 2010. Again it will require a Sao
Paulo storm but as we seen in 2003 Jordan won with Giancarlo Fisichella
anything is possible. Abu Dhabi will be the most unlikely with dry
weather almost guaranteed and a nice open circuit making incidents a low
possibility.
I think the new teams have done ok in the
circumstances, what it has shown is that coming in as a new entry is
not easy and yesterdays FIA decision that none of the new applicants for
2011 were accepted shows that even the governing body have realised
that it takes a lot of resources and finances to be competitive in the
sport. Lotus will be keen to be fighting in midfield come next season
and Virgin will hope for more consistency. HRT have a more muddled
outlook. With both Epsilon Euskadi and Jaqcues Villeneuve still looking
for a way into F1, there may yet be a merger or buyout involving the
Spanish team.
So as you follow the twists and turns of
the title battle or on the edge of your seat as a crazy race unfolds
keep an eye on the new guys because even a 12th position could yet prove
significant
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