Infinite Improbability Drive of the Race - Bahrain

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 14 Mar 2010, 15:36

The 2010 F1 season has commenced, and it's time to decide on who over-performed in the first GP! Just a reminder, the IIDOTR is a democratically-decided award

based on the assumption that, at any moment in time, there is a non-zero probability that even the slowest, most inexperienced and least reliable of underdogs might win the race. That under every rock, there might be a gold nugget. This is the award for that first podium that we all celebrate, for the overtake no-one was expecting, for Nick Heidfeld's first win. This is the award, in short, for the driver or team that makes you go "Woah! Where did THAT come from?!".

Just remember: this is a feel-good award, that will focus on nothing but track action.

Usual rules: everyone gets two votes. First vote is worth 10 points, the second 6. Something like

1st (10 points):
2ns (6 points):

Now, if you'll excuse me, I am off to watch the race before casting my own votes!

Enforcer · Post by **Enforcer** » 14 Mar 2010, 15:42

1st Robert Kubica - That Renault didn't probably didn't deserve to be 9th on the grid, and we definitely didn't expect it to be there - Sauber, Force India or Williams were tipped to make up the top 10. Also didn't expect him to climb back to 11th after being dropped to the back by Webber's smokescreen.

2nd Lotus - Two cars classified, and not completely off the pace either.

Valrys · Post by **Valrys** » 14 Mar 2010, 15:47

1st) Liuzzi - was fast when he needed to be, and 9th was pretty much the best he could hope for while all the front runners stayed reliable, also pulled off a nice move on Buemi shortly after his pitstop to claim 9th, after which he pulled a nice gap over Barrichello. Impressed, considering how anonymous he was after Monza last year
2nd)Lotus - more reliable than all the other newcomers, and Sauber, while Heikki's fastest lap was only about 4 seconds off of Alonsos, and was around 3 seconds off before Alonso knocked in those fast laps near the end.

AndreaModa · Post by **AndreaModa** » 14 Mar 2010, 15:53

1)Lotus, really great to see both cars pretty much finish the race

2)Kubica, great drive from him managed to salvage a respectable result from a very poor opening lap

Bleu · Post by **Bleu** » 14 Mar 2010, 15:58

1. Liuzzi - best outside of top four teams which were expected to be faster.
2. Lotus - Trulli out on the last lap and Kovalainen finished, while all the other new teams were out before the half distance.

Waris · Post by **Waris** » 14 Mar 2010, 16:00

1st Robert Kubica. He is outperforming the car. I hope he keeps this up throughout the season.
2nd Hispania-Campos-Dallara. The fact that they managed to get both of the cars running, and according to reports didn't sleep for four nights to make this possible, is no mean feat. We should ignore the fact that they were minutes off the pace, because you couldn't reasonably expect anything better for them. All team members deserve a really good long night's rest now.

Post by **DemocalypseNow** » 14 Mar 2010, 16:03

1) Liuzzi
2) Lotus

Ben Gilbert · Post by **Ben Gilbert** » 14 Mar 2010, 16:27

1) Liuzzi

2) Senna (Interesting parallel of Andrea Moda's sole start: Trundled around at the back before retiring from a best position of 19th. Still, a great effort to keep the thing going for so long)

Many Blue Flags · Post by **Many Blue Flags** » 14 Mar 2010, 16:55

1) Liuzzi - With all the concentration on the new teams, bigger teams and Sutil, nobody was expecting anything of Tonio, and he provided very well.

2) Petrov - I know he retired with mechanical failure, but for the same reasons above, he was running 11th on his debut, which isn't that bad.

Post by **mario** » 14 Mar 2010, 17:30

Valrys wrote:1st) Liuzzi - was fast when he needed to be, and 9th was pretty much the best he could hope for while all the front runners stayed reliable, also pulled off a nice move on Buemi shortly after his pitstop to claim 9th, after which he pulled a nice gap over Barrichello. Impressed, considering how anonymous he was after Monza last year
2nd)Lotus - more reliable than all the other newcomers, and Sauber, while Heikki's fastest lap was only about 4 seconds off of Alonsos, and was around 3 seconds off before Alonso knocked in those fast laps near the end.

I'll happily subscribe to that view - Liuzzi managed to get the points which Sutil lost out on, thanks to that early collision with Kubica (thanks to Webber's smokescreen diversion). A nice save by Liuzzi for the team, and it should be a good boost to his confidence.
Lotus, meanwhile, did well to make it to the end when even some of the established teams were struggling to make it the full distance without mechanical problems (the overheating Ferrari's, Hamilton's overheating rear brakes and front vibration, or Vettel's exhaust). On full tanks, they also seem to be a bit closer to the field - generally they were running about 4 seconds off the leaders, which is pretty good going for them. It'll probably still be a while until they catch up with the established teams, but it looks as if they have a decent base to start working from.

Nessafox · Post by **Nessafox** » 14 Mar 2010, 17:42

1 b senna; for completing more laps than both virgins
2 lotus; for not only finishing both but also seeming to slowly reduce the gap with the midfield (they're not there yet at all, but i'm sure they're going to get close by the end of the year)

Alianora La Canta · Post by **Alianora La Canta** » 14 Mar 2010, 18:08

1) Lotus - for getting two cars to the end despite one of them having hydraulics issues, for having respectable speed, getting involved and winning exciting scraps with other new teams and occasionally Hulkenburg and for pure determination on circuit.

2) Liuzzi - for doing surprisingly well given that people ahead were reliable.

ruud_70 · Post by **ruud_70** » 14 Mar 2010, 18:28

1. Petrov: He did very well for a pay driver.
2. Liuzzi: He did well for a crap driver

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 14 Mar 2010, 18:28

1. Liuzzi - Didn't expect him to be the Force's point scorer.
2. McLaren pitcrew - Got Hamilton ahead of Rosberg in the pits, even without refuelling.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 14 Mar 2010, 18:43

ruud_70 wrote:1. Petrov: He did very well for a pay driver.
2. Liuzzi: He did well for a crap driver

Kevin, is that you?

THE PRIME MINISTER OF AUSTRALIA IS AMONG US, MY FRIENDS!

FullMetalJack · Post by **FullMetalJack** » 14 Mar 2010, 18:45

1. Liuzzi - For being the top driver behind the big 4 teams, good to see him scoring points. Hopefully a top 5 finish soon so he can unrejectify himself.
2. Senna - For lasting longer than the Virgins.

AllAmericanReject · Post by **AllAmericanReject** » 14 Mar 2010, 18:58

I vote Lotus for getting both cars classified and for being much closer to the pace than anyone could have expected. I realize the Bahrain circuit is now something like 25 miles long with the new loop, but getting a car to finish the race only 2 laps down was pretty good.

tristan1117 · Post by **tristan1117** » 14 Mar 2010, 19:23

1. Liuzzi
2. Lotus

For all reasons stated above.

Warren Hughes · Post by **Warren Hughes** » 14 Mar 2010, 19:25

1. Liuzzi
2. Kubica

Popi_Larrauri · Post by **Popi_Larrauri** » 14 Mar 2010, 19:59

1) Liuzzi
2) Kubica

LucaPacchiarini · Post by **LucaPacchiarini** » 14 Mar 2010, 20:11

1 Liuzzi
2 both Loti

P_Friesacher · Post by **P_Friesacher** » 14 Mar 2010, 20:26

He's not a reject, but IIDR must go to Vettel for bringing home the Red Bull on P4.

Klon · Post by **Klon** » 14 Mar 2010, 20:29

tristan1117 wrote:1. Liuzzi
2. Lotus

For all reasons stated above.

And I'll agree with this as well...

Pieman · Post by **Pieman** » 14 Mar 2010, 21:24

1. Kubica - for reasons stated above
2. Senna - for completing many more laps than I personally expected in the HRT

beetleman64 · Post by **beetleman64** » 14 Mar 2010, 21:40

1) Lotus, for getting 2 cars to the end when Virgin and Hispania didn't get any and for being not TOO far off the midfield pace

2) Sebastian Vettel for managing to hold off Rosberg in the final laps

Edit: Changed my mind about No. 2

shinji · Post by **shinji** » 14 Mar 2010, 21:43

beetleman64 wrote:1) Lotus, for getting 2 cars to the end when Virgin and Hispania didn't get any and for being not TOO far off the midfield pace

2) Sebastian Vettel for managing to hold off Rosberg in the final laps

Edit: Changed my mind about No. 2

You spelt 'Beatle' wrong.

FloProAct · Post by **FloProAct** » 14 Mar 2010, 21:59

1. Kubica. A very good drive from near the back of the field.
2. Chandhok. Frankly, the fact that he was there was an achievement in itself!

thehemogoblin · Post by **thehemogoblin** » 14 Mar 2010, 22:05

Liuzzi and Lotus.

thalion · Post by **thalion** » 14 Mar 2010, 22:37

1. Lotus
2. Heikki Kovalainen (for actually racing with the other teams)

watka · Post by **watka** » 14 Mar 2010, 22:43

1. Lotus - reliability is the buzzword for the new teams, good to see them make it and only 2 laps down.
2. Liuzzi - not that far off Sutil's pace, and brought it home as the best of the rest, not far behind Webber.

Kubica a close 3rd, and Senna 4th.

Jack O Malley · Post by **Jack O Malley** » 14 Mar 2010, 22:58

1) Lotus. Not bad pace and amazing reliability.

2) Ferrari. I wouldn't have bet on a 1-2 after winter testing.

RAK · Post by **RAK** » 14 Mar 2010, 23:46

1) Liuzzi. Force India looked quite impressive in this race, and with some points in the bag, Liuzzi helps his chances of fending off di Resta.

2) Lotus. Reliable, consistent, and not as slow as they could have been.

TomWazzleshaw · Post by **TomWazzleshaw** » 15 Mar 2010, 04:46

1. Liuzzi: Picked up the points which Sutil lost on lap 1
2. Lotus: Both cars finished and at one point they were only 3-4 seconds a lap off the leader's pace which is frankly amazing

eagleash · Post by **eagleash** » 15 Mar 2010, 04:56

1) Lotus

2) Ferrari

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 15 Mar 2010, 07:01

1) Vitaly Petrov - even though he retired with suspension damage, he got a terrific start, took charge of Renault's campaign when Kubica spun, executed an excellent pass on Pedro de la Rosa and was seriously taking the fight to Rubens Barrichello. He he been able to continue, I'm sure he would have been able to score points.

2) Felipe Massa - despite my anti-Ferrari rant, hats off to Felipe for such a brilliant return to form. It's a shame he didn't win it ...

MinardiFan95 · Post by **MinardiFan95** » 15 Mar 2010, 07:14

1. Liuzzi - No-one expected him to be the first driver to score points for Force India this season
2. Petrov - Best of the rookies until his unfortunate retirement

Honourable mention to Lotus for being the best of the new teams despite being the last of the new teams to be given a spot on the entry list.

Captain Hammer · Post by **Captain Hammer** » 15 Mar 2010, 10:56

ruud_70 wrote:1. Petrov: He did very well for 2nd in the GP2 championship.

Fixed.

muttley · Post by **muttley** » 15 Mar 2010, 11:07

1. Renault looked quite competitive both in qualyifing and during the race, which is something I didn't expect at all.
2. Lotus proved very reliable but slow. If they can keep their reliability and improve a little on pace, they can score a few points in high-attrition races.

Jordan · Post by **Jordan** » 15 Mar 2010, 17:59

Waris wrote:1st Robert Kubica. He is outperforming the car. I hope he keeps this up throughout the season.
2nd Hispania-Campos-Dallara. The fact that they managed to get both of the cars running, and according to reports didn't sleep for four nights to make this possible, is no mean feat. We should ignore the fact that they were minutes off the pace, because you couldn't reasonably expect anything better for them. All team members deserve a really good long night's rest now.

I think this mirrors my thoughts quite well. HRT may have been done and dusted quite early, but the effort they put in to get there was nothing short of heroic.

CarlosFerreira · Post by **CarlosFerreira** » 15 Mar 2010, 18:25

Captain Hammer wrote:1) Vitaly Petrov - even though he retired with suspension damage, he got a terrific start, took charge of Renault's campaign when Kubica spun, executed an excellent pass on Pedro de la Rosa and was seriously taking the fight to Rubens Barrichello. He he been able to continue, I'm sure he would have been able to score points.

I have to agree. He was only 1.7 seconds off Noseman in Qualifying and managed to pass a geriatric in a slow-moving BMW-Ferrari. Surprised everyone - like me - who thought he'd be taking the fight to the Lotii.

On a different note, my votes:

Robert Kubica: fast, focused, fighting. Showed real spirit, and that the flame some of us once saw in him remains alive. I can now go back to saying he is a Champion to be without regrets.

Hispania Racing Team: put up a monster amount of laps compared to Virgin. The simple fact that they did get around the circuit should be celebrated; for my previous lack of faith in Colin Kolles, I repent.