Your Reject of the Year!

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 19 Oct 2009, 02:13

So, 2009 is pretty much done. We've just got Abu Dhabi to go, and that's it. I'm calling this one a little bit early, because I seriously doubt that there is anything anyone can do in the Middle East that would drastically alter the standings. As per the usual season review, you need to award first, second and third with the provision for special mentions.

Dishonourable Mention - Off-track Politics
For obvious reasons, these really put a damper on the racing, though in hindsight - particualrly after a rather boring British Grand Prix - it was sometimes actualy more interesting than the racing. Ultimately, Formula Elaborate Bluff and Get Flav amounted to storms in teacups and so are not worthy of a placing.

Dishonourable Mention - Jonathan Legard
The BBC's answer to James Allen was equally annoying and less informed than his predecessor with the unfortuante habit of calling what he saw rather than offering any insight. But then, I suppose you need an everyman to balance against the expertise (and intelligence) of Brundle.

Third Place - Jamie and Enoch
I'm sorry fellas, but this is the way it has to be. The winner of the 2008 Reject of the Year was Jenson Button for "an anonymous shocker". 2009, as we know, was the Year of the Brawn, with Button being anything but anonymous (and pulling off most of the best passing moves).

Second Place - Lewis Hamilton
Hamilton has thrown away valuable points on four separate occasions - Australia, Monaco, Germany and Monza - with his take-no-prisoners approach. I'm all for drivers who will fight it out to their last, but Hamilton was his own worst enemy all season long and threw away valuable chances to defend his title.

First Place - Heikki Kovalainen
A no-brainer, this one, though I did consider Kazuki Nakajima for it, too. But Kovalainen has been involved in more incidents and altercations than most of the other drivers combined, and they're usually a result of his own mistakes. Lewis Hamilton made him look very silly.

Dj_bereta · Post by **Dj_bereta** » 19 Oct 2009, 03:12

My nominations:

Third Place - Romain Grosjean

Ok, Grjjjjean didnt have same conditions like alonso but his races are so crap. In debut fought badoer, crash with button in spa, crap race in monza, spin like nelsinho in singapore, lapped by all pilots except webber in suzuka (ok, safety car helped in this) and now, a crap race in brazil.

Second Place - Renault

Failed with tatic of "give all for alonso and gives nothing for 2nd driver", only a single podium in all season, only 26 points, any evolution during this championship.

First Place - Kazuki Nakagima:

Crash in Melbourne(with a great chance to make some points), spun off in sepang, crash in Monaco, crash with trulli in monza, crash with kobayashi in brazil, the rest of races with a poor pace and forces williams quit Toyota engines for quit him. No Points against 34.5 scored by rosberg with equal conditions (not like renault) A rejectfull season for japanese driver, remembering your father's season.

Also, I nominate Sutil with a honorable "Master of Disasters" award :lol:

eytl · Post by **eytl** » 19 Oct 2009, 03:32

Captain Hammer wrote:Third Place - Jamie and Enoch
I'm sorry fellas, but this is the way it has to be. The winner of the 2008 Reject of the Year was Jenson Button for "an anonymous shocker". 2009, as we know, was the Year of the Brawn, with Button being anything but anonymous (and pulling off most of the best passing moves).

How, pray tell, are our views on last year's performances even tangentially relevant to how this year should be viewed?

If anything, doesn't Button's performance this year highlight how correct we were last year?

And do I detect a hint of pro-Button, anti-McLaren bias in your nominations?

Not that bias is unwelcome. Jenson may have pulled off some very good passing moves, but possibly the best two of the year came from one M. Webber ... on Alonso in Spain, and the one in China where he clean drove around the outside of a rival in the rain.

Now who was that victim again? Oh, that's right ... Jenson Button ...

To each their own!

DonTirri · Post by **DonTirri** » 19 Oct 2009, 04:57

My nominations:

Third place:BMW Sauber
Letting go of a titlechance last year to develop this years car, which was nowhere to be seen pretty much all season. Saved from a higher spot thanks to (very) late season pace.

Second Place: Jenson Button.
Yeah, I am nominating the champion. why?
He won the title in a very mansellesque fashion. When the season started, Brawn had out and out best car. Jenson took advantage and won. But when other teams catched up, he was nowhere, beaten by his teamie in almost every race since Istanbul, with the only reason for his championship being the fact that Red Bull had more bad luck and rookie mistakes than you can count. Probably the most worthless champion since The Big Whiner Mansell himself. I predict he'll have the most godawful title defense since Damon Hill in 97, Jacques Villeneuve in 99 or Nelson Piquet 87.

First Place: Heikki Kovalainen
Yes, even through blue an white glasses, Heikki was awful. Outpaced by Hamilton all season, prone to stupid mistakes and just all out slow. Sorry Heikki, ya seem like a nice guy but in F1, nice guys finish last.

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 19 Oct 2009, 05:51

eytl wrote:How, pray tell, are our views on last year's performances even tangentially relevant to how this year should be viewed?

If anything, doesn't Button's performance this year highlight how correct we were last year?

Button has demonstrated that a championship-winning package isn't just about the driver. He needs a good car under him. But as Rubens Barrichello proved in the first seven races, having a brilliant car isn't all there is to it. I think Honda in general and the RA108 in particular would have been better nominations for 2008's Reject of the Year than Button.

eytl wrote:And do I detect a hint of pro-Button, anti-McLaren bias in your nominations?

I admit: I like Button and I've been following him since the day he joined. But at the same time, I don't particualrly dislike McLaren. I used to despise Hamilton, largely because of the way he walked into a great car and never really had to fight for his credentials on the track. But this year he had a dud car and made it work. But I nominated him because his performance as a World Champion - lying to the stewards over a single point in Australia, putting it in the hendge at Monaco during qualifying, attempting to win the race at the first corner in Germany and pushing too hard for a position he couldn't get in Italy - was ahrdly becoming of a World Champion. Taken on their own, the individal incidents do nothing, but if he'd used his head a little more, he would have had a fourth, a third and possibly even two wins and he would have been able to stage his own title defence. His late-season comeback would have been a real threat to Button; while I don't think of Button as simply having coasted his way to the title - the Brawn was clearly not the best car on the grid for the second half of the season, except in Valencia and Monza - Lewis Hamilton had the best setup. Nobody clearly made a case for being a worthy rival to Button's status as Champion-Elect: Vettel had more DNFs than race victories, Barrichello kept tripping over his own feet, Raikkonen's performance at Ferrari was all over the place because the F60 was only good on certain circuits and so on. But if Hamilton had driven with his head a litte more than his heart, that would have changed. It's easy to say that if the others had picked their game up, that it would ahve happened too, but Hamilton was the best-positioned.

As for Kovalainen, I admit that he impressed me more than Hamiton in his first year - hear me out on this one; Hamilton was in a good car the whole time and so had a plateau effect, whereas Kovalainen progressively got better - but his signing to McLaren always felt as if he was only there to make up the nubmers. He was gifted his Hungary 2008 victory, and 2009 has been filled with unconvincing performances like at Monza and in Singapore when McLaren clearly had the one of the very best cars available at the time. He has been, at best, a midfielder in a lead car, totally undeserving and really only there to make up the numbers. Cynics may suggest that it's because Hamilton wanted a team-mate he wouldn't feel threatetned by, but whatever: Kovalainen is probably going to be looking for work next season.

eytl wrote:Not that bias is unwelcome. Jenson may have pulled off some very good passing moves, but possibly the best two of the year came from one M. Webber ... on Alonso in Spain, and the one in China where he clean drove around the outside of a rival in the rain.

They were good, but Button has the insane ability to find room to make a pass when he needs it the most. Taking Lewis Hamilton the way he did in Bahrain when he did was vital, and the turning point in the race. That pass on Grosjean last night, somehow making it stick long enough to power around the outside of the corner was incredible; I was so sure he was gone. Getting around Alguersuari and then Nakajima like a hot knife going through butter, and then finally nailing Kobayashi. Sure, they may have been rookie drivers and inexperienced, but that just makes them all the more impressive; remember the last time Button and Grosjean were side-by-side on the circuit? Grosjean wasn't giving him any quarter this time, and Button still pulled it off, around the outside at a point where I don't hink anyone has been cleanly passed before, at least not in the bounds of my memory. Don't get me wrong: Webber's two were great, but they were two separate passes at two separate races whereas here, Button took four guys in the space of thirty laps. And didn't he get someone like Buemi or Kovalainen late in the race, or was that just a backmarker he was lapping?

thehemogoblin · Post by **thehemogoblin** » 19 Oct 2009, 06:47

3rd place: BMW Sauber

Not only did they ruin last year's title shot by thinking about this year, they ruined next year's grid spot because they were stupid.

2nd place: Kazuki Nakajima

Sorry, bud, I really like you, but you're pitiful in comparison to your teammate. You're 30 points off of him or so... and you haven't scored a point at all this year.

1st place: Nelson Piquet, Jr.

Not only were you incredibly bad on the track this year, but your off-track crap set out to ruin the entire season, and you would have done it if you could have.

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 19 Oct 2009, 07:00

3rd: BMW Sauber: It was a very close thing between them and Kazuki Nakajima but in the end Beamer gave up the chance for the championship last year for a full tilt this year and how exactly did that end up?

2nd: Heikki Kovalainen: Sure the MP4-24 was a crap starting block for McLaren to start with but Heikki has only been performing on par with the car. Best finish of 4th at Valencia and only 1 other drive of note in China and 22 points is nothing compared to teammate Hamilton's 2 wins, 5 poduims, 3 poles and 49 points.

1st: Nelson Piquet Jr: Sure life must suck being Renault's 2nd driver but frankly he sucked even more. He was also the guy who was stupid enough to crash at Singapore and cause that massive clusterbathplug* known at "CrashGate"

*That was intentional

eytl · Post by **eytl** » 19 Oct 2009, 10:13

Captain Hammer wrote:
eytl wrote:How, pray tell, are our views on last year's performances even tangentially relevant to how this year should be viewed?

If anything, doesn't Button's performance this year highlight how correct we were last year?

Button has demonstrated that a championship-winning package isn't just about the driver. He needs a good car under him. But as Rubens Barrichello proved in the first seven races, having a brilliant car isn't all there is to it. I think Honda in general and the RA108 in particular would have been better nominations for 2008's Reject of the Year than Button.

This is where people need to understand that ever since we started writing race reviews and end-of-season reviews in 2000, ROTY was always for the lowest-ranked driver. We didn't want to give ROTY to teams or other entities (eg Max, Bernie, stewards, the FIA, the rules, drainage grates etc.). We made an exception when we gave it to Williams in 2006, and then did it again by giving it to Honda in 2007. By last year we decided to return to our roots and give it to the lowest-ranked driver, who happened to be Button. Unfortunately there's no written review to justify the rankings because I was on writing hiatus. However we felt Honda in 2007 had been more of an epic fail because in 2006 they had been a race winner. By comparison 2008 was on the same level, or perhaps even a slight improvement given Barrichello's podium in Britain. And if anything that race sealed Jenson's fate because, in wet conditions where he should have excelled, Rubens came 3rd and Jenson slid off. And, apart from Spain, Jenson was pretty much anonymous all year. As long-time readers and listeners would know, failing to meet expectations or sheer anonymity are much worse crimes than giving it a red hot go and crashing and burning.

Don't know why I felt compelled to explain all that, but anyway ...

Captain Hammer wrote:
eytl wrote:Not that bias is unwelcome. Jenson may have pulled off some very good passing moves, but possibly the best two of the year came from one M. Webber ... on Alonso in Spain, and the one in China where he clean drove around the outside of a rival in the rain.

They were good, but Button has the insane ability to find room to make a pass when he needs it the most. Taking Lewis Hamilton the way he did in Bahrain when he did was vital, and the turning point in the race. That pass on Grosjean last night, somehow making it stick long enough to power around the outside of the corner was incredible; I was so sure he was gone. Getting around Alguersuari and then Nakajima like a hot knife going through butter, and then finally nailing Kobayashi. Sure, they may have been rookie drivers and inexperienced, but that just makes them all the more impressive; remember the last time Button and Grosjean were side-by-side on the circuit? Grosjean wasn't giving him any quarter this time, and Button still pulled it off, around the outside at a point where I don't hink anyone has been cleanly passed before, at least not in the bounds of my memory. Don't get me wrong: Webber's two were great, but they were two separate passes at two separate races whereas here, Button took four guys in the space of thirty laps. And didn't he get someone like Buemi or Kovalainen late in the race, or was that just a backmarker he was lapping?

Webber's move on Alonso was also a "must-make". And dare I say that yes, Jenson has proven to be a good racer, but often because he has stuffed up in qualifying in the second half of the year?

Anyway, as I said, to each their own. Back to the business of giving everyone the chance to nominate their ROTY podiums!

fjackdaw · Post by **fjackdaw** » 19 Oct 2009, 10:34

DISHONOURABLE MENTIONS -

The TV Director. While much improved since the local directors just watched the leader go round and round and round, as mentioned in my reject of the race nomination, they still have an annoying habit of showing lengthy replays while there's still plenty happening on track.

Jonathan Legard - For all the many many reasons.

Lewis Hamilton & Team - Had lie-gate happened at the end of the season, they'd be remembered much more as bad guys.

3. GIANCARLDO FISICHELLA - For allowing patriotism to torpedo his career and reputation.

2. NELSON PIQUET JR. - For allowing pride and petty revenge to torpedo his career and reputation.

1: WOKING OVERTAKING GROUP - Nice try, fellahs.

tristan1117 · Post by **tristan1117** » 19 Oct 2009, 10:56

Dishonorable Mention: Giancarlo Fisichella

Would have done better if he stayed at Force India. And he replaced Luca Badoer :evil:

, which is a cardinal sin in F1 Rejects-land

Dishonorable Mention: Off-track events

Not a driver or team or even an organization, but often the politics overshadowed the racing.

3rd Place: Heikki Kovaleinen

A terrible year forhim. Not much to say, out qualified numerous times, rarely scored points and far too many DNFs

2nd Place: Nelson Piquet Jr.

Was atrocious in that Renault, and starts more problems with Crash-Gate.

1st Place:

(drum roll) KAZUKI NAKAJIMA! Couldn't do crap in the Williams in the start of the season when it was good. Hasn't scored any points and consistently missed out on the Q1 cut.

lostpin · Post by **lostpin** » 19 Oct 2009, 10:59

3. Ferrari driver politics: for Badoer's humiliation, ditching Raikkonen for Alonso, and who the hell thought that bringing Fisichella in was a good move?!?

2. Nakajima and Kovalainen (I couldn't decide who was more rejectful, but they both had very dissapointing seasons)

1. The Piquets (Piquet Sr. for ruining his son's career, and Jr. for being so mediocre)

Yannick · Post by **Yannick** » 19 Oct 2009, 12:22

I guess we will have to wait with that one until it comes out how the FIA presidential election was being manipulated.

kowalski · Post by **kowalski** » 19 Oct 2009, 12:26

lostpin wrote:3. Ferrari driver politics: who the hell thought that bringing Fisichella in was a good move?!?

me? quite a few others around here?

anyways....

top 3 rejects:

Renault / Piquet - I think blaming Piquet for the whole thing is silly really. the team are far more guilty than one young guy in his first season who is desperate for his drive in a team that didnt support him.

Nakajima - been slow hasn't he.... shame as he showed promise at times. only full time driver without points...

Kovalainen - top flight career over? sure he got the shitty end of the stick at mclaren but he looked completly out of it for most of the year.

- special mention to the mclaren / hamilton lying in australia. dirty little tricks...

Enforcer · Post by **Enforcer** » 19 Oct 2009, 13:07

Disonhourable Mentions:
Heikki Kovalainen - thouroughly destroyed by Hamilton for most of the season.
BMW Sauber - We'll chuck away Kubica's chance at the Championship in 2008 to develop a rubbish car for 2009! Genius.
New rules to promote overtaking & KERS - Ineffective & a "push to block" button respectively.

Third Place:
Kazuki Nakajima - Even Sebastien Bourdais scored points. And to top it off, Nakajima didn't even look like scoring points or even getting anywhere near Rosberg all season. He was in Q3 twice including Brazil, I think. His only hope for next season was Toyota and Kobayashi's shown more in one race than he did all season.

Second Place:
Nelson Piquet Junior - I was going to lump him in with Crashgate, but then that wasn't entirely his fault, so I decided to seperate them. Without knowing for sure how much extra help Alonso was actually getting and how much was in Nelsinho's head, I have to judge him on pure performance relative to his team mate... and oh dear. Easily the worst driver on the grid, IMO.

First Place:
Briatore, Symonds & Crashgate - Possibly the worst thing a team have ever been caught doing?

rffp · Post by **rffp** » 19 Oct 2009, 15:42

3rd place - Off-track politics
"Winner takes it all" / medal system instead of the tradional points system, diffuser row, F-Elaborate Bluff, Crashgate, Bernie's reckless and senile statements, etc. We are simply tired of this, but there is more to come unfortunately and the end is not coming soon...

2nd place - BMW Sauber
How did they manage to drop the ball this way? Wasn't the 2009 season supposed to be the one that they made a title bid? What a disaster, their first half was on the same par of Honda's 2007 one. They pulled the plug on the team, refused to turn the team to a management buyout, did not sign the Concorde Agreement and then sold to Qadbak (?!), what have BMW done to the traditional Sauber team? Not to mention the whole KERS fiasco.

1st place - Nelson Piquet Jr
This is a driver that should be placed now on the top of the "You Lucky Bastards" section. His driving skills are indeed better than Roman Grosjean's pitiful ones, but his attitude is regrettable. He overrates himself, was not able to raise his game since the beginning of his F1 career, talks way more than he should, wrecked many nosecones during the season, scored 0 point in a Renault, and issued a pathetic statement after getting his boot. That should be enough for the ROTY award, but after Crashgate, there should be no dispute whatsoever.

Dishonourable Mentions
Toyota - not knowing what happened when the car doesn't go well is something we all have heard about, but not knowing why Trulli qualified well in Spa is something new for me. They appeared as a threat to Brawn in the beginning but will end the season in 5th place in a Toyota-like manner!
Heikki Kovalainen - not a glimpse of the driver that went well in the 2007 Renault car, underperformed the whole year.
Renault - in 3 years the Drivers and Constructors champions became this? Are they doing their utter best so Ghosn can finally pull the plug on the team?

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 19 Oct 2009, 16:47

Dishonourable mention 1: off-track action
Will you all please stop messing my racing up?!

Dishonourable mention 2: testing ban
Testing limitations, yes. Testing ban, no. Daft idea.

Dishonourable mention 3: Red Bull
Not for lack of pace, but for the multitude of unnecessary errors when under pressure.

3rd place: Ferrari
From the fastest car in 2008 to one of the slowest in 2009, and then proving incapable of turning the boat around (unlike McLaren and, to an extent, BMW). Seemed adrift, took them too long to react, messed up Massa's replacement (not entirely their fault; see DM2...) and topped up by replacing Iceman-Balls of Steel Raikkonen with overdriving, too-latin-for-his-own-good Alonso. Just wait for the punchline on that one...

2nd place: Heikki Kovalainen
For all the reasons formerly pointed out. Everyone in F1 and in the forum seems to like him, but he can't seem to string a good season together. Worrying.

1st place: Renault
Just simply godawful, there's no other word for it. It wasn't just the Crashgate, it was also the wheel falling off in Hungary, the fact that the two cars never seemed prepared to the same standard, the hesitations about KERS, the general loss of direction and the inevitable awful results. Might have finished two young drivers' careers, and were mostly seen being overtaken. Pitiful.

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 19 Oct 2009, 17:10

3rd - The spring from Barrichello's car; nearly killed Massa, which indirectly led to the total embarrassment of one driver and the end of a decent career for another.

2nd - Honda. The most idiotic sale ever.

1st - Renault. Crap car, Crashgate, Piquet Jr., Briatore, Alonso's worst season in F1, Grosjean's dead career, Symonds, the wheels came off, both literally and metaphorically.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 19 Oct 2009, 17:24

shinji wrote:... which indirectly led to the total embarrassment of one driver and the end of a decent career for another.

Lost you there, shinji. What do you mean?

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 19 Oct 2009, 17:41

CarlosFerreira wrote:
shinji wrote:... which indirectly led to the total embarrassment of one driver and the end of a decent career for another.

Lost you there, shinji. What do you mean?

Badoer and Fisichella were Massa's replacements, Badoer was embarrassing and Fisichella's career is over.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 19 Oct 2009, 17:46

shinji wrote:
CarlosFerreira wrote:
shinji wrote:... which indirectly led to the total embarrassment of one driver and the end of a decent career for another.

Lost you there, shinji. What do you mean?

Badoer and Fisichella were Massa's replacements, Badoer was embarrassing and Fisichella's career is over.

Ah, yes. Thank you for that. Must have been sleeping while reading your post. :oops:

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 19 Oct 2009, 17:48

CarlosFerreira wrote:
shinji wrote:
CarlosFerreira wrote:
Lost you there, shinji. What do you mean?

Badoer and Fisichella were Massa's replacements, Badoer was embarrassing and Fisichella's career is over.

Ah, yes. Thank you for that. Must have been sleeping while reading your post.

Glad to know my posts are appreciated.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 19 Oct 2009, 18:22

shinji wrote:Glad to know my posts are appreciated.

So very sorry!

Shall we go on messing this thread up until the mods kick us for wasting traffic?

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 19 Oct 2009, 18:30

CarlosFerreira wrote:
shinji wrote:Glad to know my posts are appreciated.

So very sorry!

Shall we go on messing this thread up until the mods kick us for wasting traffic?

Would Jamie or Enoch do that? I doubt it.

Anyway yeah, Renault are my ROTY.

thehemogoblin · Post by **thehemogoblin** » 19 Oct 2009, 19:00

I disagree with whoever listed Ferrari, because they would have finished third in the championship without a doubt had Massa not gotten sprung.

In fact, Massa has the same amount of points as Kovalainen in seven less races, while Hamilton and Raikkonen are only one point apart.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 19 Oct 2009, 19:09

thehemogoblin wrote:I disagree with whoever listed Ferrari, because they would have finished third in the championship without a doubt had Massa not gotten sprung.

That was me. A reading of the reasons reveals it has not that much to do with speed, and more to do with falling standards. Anyway, personal bias is the name of the game.

Henrique · Post by **Henrique** » 19 Oct 2009, 19:19

3rd place: Kazuki Nakajima
Right now, there are 7 drivers on the championship table with 0 points. But only one participated in every single race: Kazuki Nakajima.
And let's say that he scores at Abu Dabhi. His teammate Nico Rosberg scored 34.5 so far. I've seen people get a position in the reject podium for being shadows of their teammates. Nakajima is no exception!

2nd place: BMW Sauber
In 2008, they ruined Kubica's chances of winning the drivers championship to focus on next year's car. They looked to be far ahead of everyone else, but that wasn't the case when the championship started. This year, they weren't even close to their usual 3rd place. Plus, they showed they don't understand that F1 is made of ups and downs and BMW decided to go BAAAWWW and not compete next year. Veteran Sauber fans are in rage and I've seen them swear they'll never buy a BMW car.

1st place: Nelsinho Piquet
He knew, or should know, that he was lucky to keep his seat for 2009. However, he failed to do better than last year and didn't score a single point. Now, we've seen many drivers who got fired mid-season. But Nelsinho decided to be different and caused the whole Crashgate thing, as if everyone wasn't tired of off-track action already. Now, who wants a driver who is willing to cheat and reveals team's secrets after being fired? Off to NASCAR with you!

DP-Future F1 Reject · Post by **DP-Future F1 Reject** » 19 Oct 2009, 19:23

Dishonourable Mentions:
Renault for crash gate
Flav for being Flav
McLaren for lie gate

3rd - Nelsinho
2nd - Sebastien Bourdais
1st - Kaz Nakajima - could it possibly be anyone else?

watka · Post by **watka** » 19 Oct 2009, 20:10

Notables:
Kazuki Nakajima - On sheer stats alone, 0 points, in a decent car, he's a strong candidate for ROTY. Had potential, showed that he was nothing more than a sponsorship driver.
Luca Badoer - Sorry, but he was far worse than could have been imagined.
Giancarlo Fisichella - It would be unfair to mention Badoer alone when Fisi hasn't faired much better.
Things falling off cars - Caused the 2 above nominations, gave Renault some embarassment, almost killed Massa, and outside of F1, it did sadly end Surtees' life.
Valencia Street Circuit - So bad it deserves its own mention. Even worse than TI Aida. Before my time, but probably worse than Phoenix, maybe even the Birmingham Super Prix.
Red Bull - When it wasn't the engines failing, it was a bungled pitstop, or terrible strategy, should have been closer to Brawn.
Jonathan Legard - That was probably the first time that I haven't been excited by a championship decider, Legard is just a fool (sorry to be blunt)

3rd - Overtaking Working Group - Wow, now the cars are racing nose to tail 0.8 seconds apart from each other instead of 1.3 seconds! Really worth it for some of the hideous cars we saw this season?

2nd - Heikki Kovalainen - A promising career down the drain so it seems. When Hamilton picked the team up, he just didn't raise his game. There may have been a bit of a driver preference going on, but he was well well off Lewis' pace most of the season and made some amateur mistakes. It was impressive how he picked Renault up after the departure of Alonso, showing real fighting spirit, but I've seen none of that since he joined McLaren, especially this season.

1st - Piquet and Briatore - What a complete joke. Formula Elaborate Bluff was ridiculous, but what turned out with this was a jokey conspiracy theory was actually true. How desperate must you be to crash your car deliberately? How desperate must you be to get one of your drivers to crash deliberately? Alonso just seems to leave a trail of chaos behind him wherever he goes, his fault or not.

FullMetalJack · Post by **FullMetalJack** » 19 Oct 2009, 20:59

3rd place - Sebastien Bourdais

He may have been really slow but at least he scored points on two occasions, in a backmarker car which makes Piquet's and Nakajima's seasons even more embarrassing. However, he was extremely slow compared to rookie teammate Buemi who has been quite impressive.

2nd place - Kazuki Nakajima

Kamikaze Kazuki was expected to do better with a decent car and binned his car on several occasions. To his credit, he was unlucky not to pick up a couple of points in Turkey. No points simply isn't good enough. If he had done half as good as Rosberg, Williams could have finished 5th in the constructors standings.

1st place - Nelson Piquet Jr

What were Renault thinking of when they decided to keep him on for 2009? I must know. No high points at all, 1 ROTR in his career is a surprise. I never thought i'd see the best driver in F1 teamed up with the worst, but that was the Renault line-up for the start of 2009. Showed absolutely no maturity or racing ability. And to top it all off, Crashgate. He is a disgraced driver. A definite ROTY.

deCrasheris · Post by **deCrasheris** » 19 Oct 2009, 21:25

My ROTY podium

3rd Kazuki Nakajima: For not scoring a point in what was decent car eventhough he did have a lot of bad luck (could of scored in Brazil if it wasn't for Kobyashi) and bad strategy calls from the Williams team aswell. But i think his time in F1 is over unless Toyota can get another engine deal set up because i think Kobyashi will be in a Toyota next year alongside Timo Glock.

2nd Heikki Kovalinen: For being owned by Lewis Hamilton this year and for the assortment of accidents he had. Will be lucky if he catches on with one of the new teams next year and may have to become a pay driver to boot.

1st Who else but Nelson Piquet Jr: Did absolutely nothing this year. Finally got into an accident not of his own doing in Monoco with Buemi and said that these inexperienced guys should not be racing. Then finally got sacked for sucking so bad and being owned by Alonso again which he then decided to throw everyone under the bus and got Flav kicked out of F1 and Pat Symonds a 5 year ban for crashgate. Honestly i think he wasn't told to crash and he crashed on his own accord. he should never step foot in F1 again but he should have fun in Nascar if he is signed and I can't wait to see Ron Hornaday, Todd Bodine, or Mike Skinner give him the welcome to nascar 'rookie treatment'.

Ross Prawn · Post by **Ross Prawn** » 19 Oct 2009, 23:36

Honorable mentions:-

Bernie - Has generally acted like he has lost it all year. Forgot that it rains in Malaysia. Still in the process of cocking up the British GP. Thinks Hitler was a good guy. etc. etc.

Honda - Invested in Ross Brawn, spent a fortune and then lost their bottle. Rejected themselves. Only saving grace is that they supported the Brawn set-up.

Heikki - Totally outclassed by Lewis, and made poor use of a competitive car.

But the clear winner must be Nelson Piquet jnr. An embarrassment in the car. The only person in the world who could not understand why he was sacked. Then played the central role in one of F1's all time biggest political fiascos.

Jack O Malley · Post by **Jack O Malley** » 20 Oct 2009, 07:48

Dishonorable mentions:
- 2009 rule changes (no in season testing, diffuser-gate, etc) bar slick tyres.
- Kovalainen & Nakajima: for being outperformed by their team-mates all year.
- Bernie: enough said...

3 - BMW Sauber: last year gave up Kubica title chase for developing... what?? And then folded, threatening the future of a classic team.

2 - off track politics: Diffuser-gate, Lie-gate, Nelsinho/Flav/Crash-gate, and the season is yet not over

1 - Honda: I would laugh a lot if Jamie and Enoch awarded them ROTY, they truly deserve it!

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 20 Oct 2009, 08:01

I don't think Honda would have been guaranteed one World Championship, much less two if they'd stayed. The Honda engine was nowhere near as good as the Mercedes, and the RA109 (as it would have been known) would have looked very different because the oil tank was a different shape; the BGP-001 had to be remodelled to accomodate the Mercedes engine, and for all we know, that may have actually been a blessing in disguise. The point is that they would have won races, but I don't think they would have dominated.

Otherwise, I have a new Dishonourable Mention: Everyone Who Isn't Brawn. Since their dual World Championships, a few more details have come to light about their situation at the beginning of the season:

- Button had to take a pay cut of five million pounds.
- Brawn was uncertain whether the team would make it to Melbourne a week before the race.
- Barrichello was paid on a points-basis that was capped at twenty-five points; he was also only signed for the first four races.
- If another driver came along with a sponsor, Barrichello would have to make way (the reason why he had to do it and not Button was because Button got in first).
- Their budget consisted solely of what Honda gave them.
- The team was not looked favourably upon to the point where Branson was paying them $250,000 per race, and he may have had the option to back out at any time.

By rights, Brawn GP shouldn't have existed. They should have faded into obscurity, and it would have been so if it were not for the excpetional circumstances that saw them abandon development of the RA108 because of the new rules. They shouldn't have existed, and yet they made it, and they were the class act of 2009. They made the Ferraris and the McLarens (and, on occasion, the Red Bulls) look very, very silly. Because Brawn have pulled off one of sporting's biggest comebacks, everyone not driving a Brawn (or working for Brawn) gets a Dishonourable Mention.

rffp · Post by **rffp** » 20 Oct 2009, 08:32

watka wrote:Notables:
Red Bull - When it wasn't the engines failing, it was a bungled pitstop, or terrible strategy, should have been closer to Brawn.

CarlosFerreira wrote:Dishonourable mention 3: Red Bull
Not for lack of pace, but for the multitude of unnecessary errors when under pressure.

I would say that nominating Red Bull is unfair. They might have screwed up, but still the quality jump they were able to make this year outweighs any deficiencies. Mind us that they had never won before and that they were able to do this without double diffuser in the beginning and with a Renault engine (where was the French team?).

Chewie · Post by **Chewie** » 20 Oct 2009, 09:11

Captain Hammer wrote:I don't think Honda would have been guaranteed one World Championship, much less two if they'd stayed. The Honda engine was nowhere near as good as the Mercedes, and the RA109 (as it would have been known) would have looked very different because the oil tank was a different shape; the BGP-001 had to be remodelled to accomodate the Mercedes engine, and for all we know, that may have actually been a blessing in disguise. The point is that they would have won races, but I don't think they would have dominated.

Otherwise, I have a new Dishonourable Mention: Everyone Who Isn't Brawn. Since their dual World Championships, a few more details have come to light about their situation at the beginning of the season:

- Button had to take a pay cut of five million pounds.
- Brawn was uncertain whether the team would make it to Melbourne a week before the race.
- Barrichello was paid on a points-basis that was capped at twenty-five points; he was also only signed for the first four races.
- If another driver came along with a sponsor, Barrichello would have to make way (the reason why he had to do it and not Button was because Button got in first).
- Their budget consisted solely of what Honda gave them.
- The team was not looked favourably upon to the point where Branson was paying them $250,000 per race, and he may have had the option to back out at any time.

By rights, Brawn GP shouldn't have existed. They should have faded into obscurity, and it would have been so if it were not for the excpetional circumstances that saw them abandon development of the RA108 because of the new rules. They shouldn't have existed, and yet they made it, and they were the class act of 2009. They made the Ferraris and the McLarens (and, on occasion, the Red Bulls) look very, very silly. Because Brawn have pulled off one of sporting's biggest comebacks, everyone not driving a Brawn (or working for Brawn) gets a Dishonourable Mention.

Also interesting to hear that they only had 3 chassis for the entire season! and that the Mercedes engine was more of a botch up than the results would let you believe. It is a miracle that they got to the grid, a miracle that they finished a race, a miracle that they won a race at at all, and to go on and win both championships is nothing short of dreamland.

People who still bemoan their drop off in results need to remember their development budget was tiny compared to the big teams, and they were only ever going to struggle when the other teams cought up; but they remained reliable, didn't crash (lucky really when you only have 3 chassis), and managed the gap to ensure they took the title.

My rejects of the year:

Max & Bernie

Honda Motor Company

Flavio Briatore

Enforcer · Post by **Enforcer** » 20 Oct 2009, 12:35

shinji wrote:3rd - The spring from Barrichello's car; nearly killed Massa, which indirectly led to the total embarrassment of one driver and the end of a decent career for another.

2nd - Honda. The most idiotic sale ever.

1st - Renault. Crap car, Crashgate, Piquet Jr., Briatore, Alonso's worst season in F1, Grosjean's dead career, Symonds, the wheels came off, both literally and metaphorically.

Worse than his pointless first season with Minardi?

Valrys · Post by **Valrys** » 20 Oct 2009, 13:08

Enforcer wrote:
shinji wrote:3rd - The spring from Barrichello's car; nearly killed Massa, which indirectly led to the total embarrassment of one driver and the end of a decent career for another.

2nd - Honda. The most idiotic sale ever.

1st - Renault. Crap car, Crashgate, Piquet Jr., Briatore, Alonso's worst season in F1, Grosjean's dead career, Symonds, the wheels came off, both literally and metaphorically.

Worse than his pointless first season with Minardi?

He was driving a Minardi that had been cobbled together in about a week, then had virtually no development, what did you expect of him?

Enforcer · Post by **Enforcer** » 20 Oct 2009, 13:34

Valrys wrote:
Enforcer wrote:
shinji wrote:3rd - The spring from Barrichello's car; nearly killed Massa, which indirectly led to the total embarrassment of one driver and the end of a decent career for another.

2nd - Honda. The most idiotic sale ever.

1st - Renault. Crap car, Crashgate, Piquet Jr., Briatore, Alonso's worst season in F1, Grosjean's dead career, Symonds, the wheels came off, both literally and metaphorically.

Worse than his pointless first season with Minardi?

He was driving a Minardi that had been cobbled together in about a week, then had virtually no development, what did you expect of him?

To score 0 points?

To clarify my point, I took Shinji's post as suggesting that the Renault team was so bad that Alonso had his worst ever season in terms of results, without being at fault himself. Which isn't exactly true, because he had a worse season in terms of results at Minardi. Maybe he'll correct me on what he means.

Archie2K · Post by **Archie2K** » 20 Oct 2009, 14:31

Enforcer wrote:To clarify my point, I took Shinji's post as suggesting that the Renault team was so bad that Alonso had his worst ever season in terms of results, without being at fault himself. Which isn't exactly true, because he had a worse season in terms of results at Minardi. Maybe he'll correct me on what he means.

IIRC Alonso regularly outqualified and outfinished his teammate at Minardi so in absolute terms his results might have been worse, but in terms of effort his Minardi season was better, and in terms of just looking like he gave a toss.

Mention: Overtaking Group/Quality of Racing/Moving GPs
In terms of the championship this year has been brilliant, but until Brazil therw wasn't a race that I'd be rushing to stream off everyone's favourite video streaming website. Overtaking was still largely done in the pits and the dirty air remained a crippling problem such that even on overtaking friendly circuits, a driver two seconds a lap faster couldn't make a pass. The spectacle of moving the start time of Grands Prix led to the Malaysia debacle, the sun in the eyes in Australia, and I missed both due to the new start time!

Mention: Toro Rosso
Taking points and victories in the tail end of '08 to finishing an almost certain last in the constructors in '09, behind even Force India, whilst the sister team makes a real bid for the championship. Finally, when they are fast in Japan, both drivers bin it.

Mention: Button detractors
Button beat his teammate consistently when he had the faster car, then managed to salvage points when the car wasn't so good. I can't see how people can call him an unworthy champion.

Mention: Street Circuits
Valencia and Singapore provided utterly snoreworthy events. In terms of action, easily the worst two on the calendar, surely worse than the purpose built Tilke-dromes? Abu Dhabi doesn't look inspired either.

Renault
Like Toro Rosso, went from taking victories in '08 to a dreadful '09. Car clearly looked like a dog, Piquet Jr was exceedingly average, Alonso seems to give up caring with his Ferrari move certain in all but name, and then the whole Crashgate affair was a farce from start to finish. Results in them losing major sponsors and surely in trouble for '10, unless perhaps another Brawn-style rising from the ashes is on the cards?

Kovalainen
Kovalainen escapes gold because the McLaren was such a dreadful car for half the season, but we had first lap offs in Australia and Malaysia. A crash in Monaco where the performance disadvantage wasn't so strong. Plain slow in Italy despite seemingly having the best strategy such that he was passed by Liuzzi. Qualifying crash in Japan. Driving off with the fuelhose in Brazil. And not a single podium all year, whilst his teammate took two victories.

Nakajima
Williams have probably disappointed most out given pre-season expectations. Failed to make any headway when they had the magic diffuser, but the figures tell all. Rosberg has scored 34.5 points to Nakajima's 0. Woefully anonymous in what seemed like a reasonable car, and almost sure to lose a drive for next year.

So given the accuracy of my predictions, expect a stunning, action filled race at the fantastic Yas Marina circuit, whose teatime start provides a real test for the drivers, and a first lap calamity caused by a daydreaming Button takes out half the field, resulting in a Nakajima, Kovalainen, Buemi podium, and the first Brawn double DNF.

Ferrim · Post by **Ferrim** » 20 Oct 2009, 15:54

I'm seriously thinking about Williams for the ROTR, although I think they won't get it.

Not a single podium while even Renault and BMW (and Force India, for God's sake) got it. A car good enough to fight for 3rd in the constructors (yes, I mean 3rd, and no, I've not lost it: it has been a better car than the McLaren and the Ferrari for the first half of the season, and quite competitive a few times since) but they are lying 6th and could still finish 8th (WTF?). They will probably be finishing behind their former engine supplier, who are quitting Formula One.

Rosberg has driven better, but has kept making stupid mistakes (Singapore anyone?) while Nakajima has had one good race all season, and then he got screwed by the pit crew when he was going to score a couple of points (at Turkey).

This is coming from a Williams supporter BTW. I'm pretty pissed by how far from our potential we have finished...