Three months? How about three hours?
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Here we go! It's not that detailed, but it's a team-by-team review nonetheless!
DGNgineering - 1st overall, 88 points. Chris Dagnall's team continued their fine form from 2013, and for the second consecutive year clinched both drivers' and constructors' championships, thus becoming the most successful team in F1RWRS history, beating the previous record of 3 titles, held by Prospec. It's a mighty achievement for the team which has only existed for two seasons. It must be said however, that their 2014 success was as much down to others failures as it was the team's own ability. Replacing the inexperienced Nathan Scott after just 4 races seemed at first to be harsh, but replacing him with Ben Fleet proved to be one of the best tactical decisions made by any team all year. The money brought in by Fleet allowed Dagnall and his team to target the unreliability of the car, and once that was solved, with Mark Dagnall in fine form, the team were able to comfortably outperform MRT in the second half of the year. Four wins, and a total of seven podiums in the last eight races was more than enough for both Mark and the team as a whole to comfortably seal both titles. Overall a very successful year for the team, but without the aid of the turbocharged Zakspeed engine for 2015, one wonders just what exactly Mark Dagnall will be able to achieve.
MRT - 2nd overall, 66 points.To say that MRT had the best car in the field would be an understatement. This was MRT's season to loose, and loose it they did. Comfortably ahead of everyone, including the DGNgineering cars, on pace alone, this season should have been Melrose's for the taking. Instead, his team demonstrated unprecedented levels of ineptitude that have rarely, if ever, been seen in the F1RWRS. Starting out with Spencer as clear number 1 having been the 2011 champion, his inconsistent form and crisis of confidence led to his dismissal from the team. Switching their focus to Nicolas initially appeared to be a good move. The young Frenchman has a lot of pace, and is no doubt a star for the future, but he was consistently let down by the mechanical flaws in the MRT car. Seven straight pole positions could only be converted into three race finishes, all of them race wins, so it's obvious that had MRT chosen to focus on the reliability of their car, they could have walked away from the 2014 season very happy indeed. Instead, they handed both titles to DGN on a plate, and have now blown their best ever chance at winning the championship with such a dominant car. With the turbo gone, the question now being asked is, will MRT ever be in such a promising position again?
Sunshine - 3rd overall, 54 points.The third, and final turbo-powered team in the 2014 season, Sunshine was never in contention for either championship. This was a sad reality, especially when the team's results over the year are examined. Their reliability was far better than MRT or even DGNgineering, yet the car lacked the ultimate pace to challenge. Having said that, the team still had numerous bright moments, Katayama taking pole, fastest lap and race win in Macau that symbolised a much stronger latter half of the year overall. Kay Lon suffered a horrendous first half of the season, and his future was in doubt at the team until he was able to turn it around with a string of podiums, helping Sunshine to third overall. Had their year been more consistent, there's no doubt they could have been closer to MRT. The future of the team now lies in the hands of DPT Asset Management, and whether or not the team can maintain their good form under the new owners remains to be seen. Three changes of ownership in four years (from Australian Minardi to Nissan, and now DPT) cannot be good for the stability of the team though.
Gillet - 4th overall, 51 points.Pipped to third place by Sunshine at the death, Gillet have comfortably been the most successful non-turbo team over the past two seasons of the F1RWRS. The Belgian squad has stuck to a strategy which has seen them extract the most out of their car, despite it being a little unreliable at times. The result has been multiple race wins and podiums, and this trend continued in 2014. Unable to stick with the turbos this year though, Gillet were consigned to scraping around as best of the rest, picking up results where they could. Two wins for De Bock were well deserved, and Moll's string of podiums were impressive, and the team go into 2015 as the clear favourites with such a well developed package. With Moll and De Bock staying on again once more, Gillet have two superbly experienced, yet still young drivers, both of whom will be looking to try and take their first title in 2015.
Jones - 5th overall, 47 points.Continuing in very much the same vein as 2013, the Jones Racing team concentrated on improving their reliability for 2014, which they did, but they didn't account for the improvement in performance of the teams around them. By mid-season they were sitting pretty at the top of the constructors' championship, but as the field settled down, their true form became apparent, and minor points finishes were all they could manage by the end of the year. Jones' win in Monaco was special, and Melrose's 4 third places certainly helped their points total, but those were the highlights in an otherwise average year. Loosing Melrose for 2015 may prove to be a setback for Jones, but his replacement Vantini is eager to demonstrate his abilities in an F1RWRS car. The team's partnership with Ford brings the total number of factory teams in the series to 5, and this new lease of life could be just what the team needs to take the fight to Gillet in 2015, and give Jones perhaps his best shot at a title as he enters the twilight of his career.
Kamaha - 6th overall, 39 points.The Kamaha team were somewhat of an enigma in 2014. Nicolas Steele had a superb year overall, with all of his points coming from podium finishes, he was even looking like an outside title contender at one point, before a late season slump that saw no points in the final 5 races. Mori had a lacklustre season it must be said, Two second places were the highlight, but a further 6th place completed his only points finishes all year, and the team suffered greatly with unreliability. As a whole, the team lacked the edge to match Gillet and Jones, the two non-turbo teams above them, but were still able to distinguish themselves from the rest of the chasing pack. Sixth overall at the end is probably less than they were expecting, and a better performance will be required for 2015.
Foxdale - 7th overall, 27 points.Recovering from their abysmal 2013 season, Foxdale could only do better in 2014. This they did, although there were still problems, and headlines made for the wrong reasons. Christopherson had a shocking half-year with the team before being fired, and in his stead, Pippa Mann was able to score consistent points to help cement the team's 7th place in the standings, whilst her brother's brilliant win in France was a great boost for all involved. McFry's superb debut in the final race of the year left Foxdale in a bit of a conundrum with their driver line-up for 2015. Ultimately Douglas has been retained, with McFry promoted to a full-time drive, and it seems increasingly likely that Pippa will take a seat at the newly formed Aeroracing team. Next season Foxdale need to continue their upward trend and focus on maximising the potential of their Renault engine.
ArrowTech - 8th overall, 13 points.Not a single podium for the Canadian ArrowTech team in 2014, Bosevic and Martins were reduced to scoring the odd few points here and there, though Mirko showed some good promise with four straight points finishes mid-way through the year, including that fantastic pole position in Monaco. Too often though the drivers found themselves towards the tail end of the field, and their poor pace cost them any chance at better results. Merging with the promising Acuri outfit for 2015 gives the team hope for the future, and a chance to re-establish themselves as an upper midfield team capable of challenging for wins on their day. The turbo ban will no doubt aid them and bring them back closer to the front.
Acuri - 9th overall, 11 points.Easily the revalation of the year, Andrea Acuri and his little team masterminded a superb season, that saw them beat all of the other new teams confortably, and put many established teams like HRT, Prospec and Phoenix to shame. Spearheading this performance was Belgian Ron Mignolet, who scored all of the team's points, including that fantastic third place in Britain that could have been so much more. His results have landed him the second seat at DGNgineering next year, a reward that is fully deserved. In contrast, Andrea himself had a poor year, with only two finishes over the course of the season. The robberies towards the end of the year marred what should have been a happy year, and the consequences have seen the team merge with ArrowTech, which will hopefully see the two teams bring the best of each other together.
GRM - 10th overall, 8 points.The HRT B-team beat the main team, but not by much. Three points finishes all year were all that GRM could manage, and all three came from Frank Zimmer. Poppy Whitechapel had a season of anonymity, though she did come close to the points on a couple of occasions. All together though, it's unsurprising that GRM's F1RWRS team will cease to exist in 2015. The team's driver merry-go-round was in full swing again, with Ben Fleet and newcomer Tommy Nash also driving for the team at various points in the year. The team were able to avoid getting stuck in pre-qualifying though, and so demonstrated that the GRM cars, whilst slow over race distance, weren't too bad over a single lap. HRT will look to try and inherit some of that as the two teams come together for 2015.
HRT - 11th overall, 6 points.What a fall from grace the Holden factory team suffered in 2014. Pipping Jones Racing to third in the constructors championship in 2013, they simply dropped the ball coming into the following season, with an uncompetitive car hampering the drivers' efforts. Someone had to be a scapegoat though, and out went Watkinson in the middle of the year, to be replaced by the arguably even worse Dean O'Lauchlan. Still, his money will have given Holden a boost for 2015, and they have take a hard look at themselves and decide where the re-building process should begin. Prior to 2014 HRT were an established midfield runner at the very least, and were well-respected in the paddock. After this season, that reputation lies in tatters, to the extent that their not even being touted as a serious threat next year. The road back to success may well be long and arduous for Holden.
Phoenix - 12th overall, 3 points.Only one more point than 2013, but the Phoenix team showed far more promise this season, and managed to start almost every race they entered. The Stig's 4th place in Britain was the team's only points finish of the year, but the foundations are there for better things to follow. Having retired at the end of the season, Phoenix McAllister is slowly building up an organisation around him, and the re-branding to Aeroracing Engineering, and move to Coventry for 2015 will only benefit the team, which will retain their factory Audi support. They need to learn to utilise this asset far more though, because further seasons at the wrong end of the grid will only damage their relationship with the German manufacturer.
Prospec - 13th overall, 1 point.It's fair to say that the Prospec team hit rock bottom in 2014. Their gradual slide down the order having dominated the series upon it's creation has been a saddening sight to paddock members and fans alike. The retirement of Gary Cameron, and the team employing two pay drivers summed up the season. It was one of damage limitation, and of preparation for the future under Cameron and the Pemberton Group. In fairness, Prospec were lucky to even score the one point at all. Schiller's performances were average, but on occasion delivered promise, and as such it seems for the immediate future he will remain in the F1RWRS. For Prospec though, signing Kay Lon for 2015 is an impressive coup, and it will hopefully prove to be the catalyst that sees this once great team rise back up the order once again.
ARC - 14th overall, 1 point.An unreliability record worse than MRT in 2014 was a hard thing to achieve, yet ARC managed it. The car had the pace, it shared the same engine as the ones in the back of the Jones cars further up the grid, but the package as a whole suffered from a plethora of different problems. After Pratchett complained mid-season, he was fired, and replaced by Trueba refugee Fredo Mestolio, but he could do little better. Plaza's single point at Mt Panorama was the only high point of the year, and the Mexican deserves an award for perservering for a whole season with the ARC's awful car. It was no surprise that on their shoestring budget, the team were bought out by Boxtel and will race under the Dutch flag for 2015.
Trueba/Trueba Alitalia - 15th overall, 0 points.The perennial triers from Trueba, led by Giovanni Roda, finally ran out of steam after 6 races into 2014. It was already looking like it would be a bleak year spent mostly in pre-qualifying for the Italian team, but the emergence of Il Barone Rampante on the scene saved the team from oblivion. The partial name change to Trueba Alitalia was to satisfy the Commission, for 2015 the Trueba name will be no more, and even Alitalia's millions couldn't turn around the flailing team, with only a single further race finish for the remainder of the year. Driver changes, tantrums and official warnings were just some of the many incidents and controversies surrounding the team once Alitalia had taken Trueba over - they've gone from being one of the quietest, politest teams on the grid to one of the noisiest! Big things are expected for 2015 though, with Hungarian veteran Koczo leading the team back into the big time.
Dofasco - 16th overall, 0 points.The first Polish team in the F1RWRS, Dofasco were one of the more successful new teams to enter in 2014. Race starts were always going to be tricky, but the team managed two, and got a car to the finish in both, an admirable acheivement. Hiang-Hao was dispatched with very quickly after failing to impress, but Groves who was drafted in to replace him did well, and alongside Tajner, the two did a solid job in pre-qualifying. Tajner remains for 2015, unsurprising considering his nationality, and now the team's focus must be on regular visits to the main grid, and if they're lucky, points to help cement themselves within the F1RWRS field.
Mitie - 17th overall, 0 points.Mitie Aviation Racing made a concerted effort to be one of the most professional and organised outfits in the paddock, and if that alone had got them out of pre-qualifying, we would have seen them on the grid regularly. Instead however, with a fairly conservative car in the fiercely competitive pre-qualifying sessions, their appearances in the races were limited to a couple of outings, with a race finish finally coming in Macau. Neuberg looks like an excellent find for the young team, and the signing of Ashley Watkinson was a shrewd move by Mr Alexander the team principal after the Briton had been dumped by HRT. Nevertheless, the team had a total of 5 drivers over the course of the season, and this no doubt affected the team's ability to deliver good performances, as the continuity and consistency just wasn't there. A re-branding to Kingfisher Racing for 2015, and an impressive set of plans look likely to propel the team to better things in the future though.
Mecha - 18th overall, 0 points.Taking over the former Flying Fish entry, Mecha were always slightly behind their rivals at Mitie and Dofasco, yet were still able to make the start of the race in Belgium. Overall though it was a tough year for the team, which ended bitterly after Saeed Al Faisal was sacked after 8 races, and replaced by former Mitie driver Steven Mackintosh. This only served to set off further problems within the team, as experienced hand James Davies became more and more frustrated with the team's lack of performance. This came to a head at the end of the year with a very public spat that has left a sour taste in the mouth of many, and put Mecha in a very poor light, and under fire from other team bosses in the paddock. They need to rebuild around Mackintosh for 2015, and hope for better things.
Tropico - 19th overall, 0 points.The CR Motorsport team were one of the original founding teams in the F1RWRS, and after their shocking 2013 season, many were hoping for better fortunes as the team were taken over and renamed Tropico for 2014. Miracles weren't going to happen overnight however, and the team faced a season-long battle with Shonan to not be the slowest team on the grid, a battle they more often than not lost. Ensuring the team are on a better footing for 2015 was the objective for the season, and now that period of consolidation is over, the prospect of actually qualifying for a race is the aim for the team now. After 8 races, Darren Older Jr finally left the team with which he entered the F1RWRS way back in 2010, ending a period of loyalty that had lasted 4 and a half seasons, to move to Alitalia. He will however return to 'his' team once more for 2015.
Shonan - 20th overall, 0 points.When his plans to take over the FAT Turbo team fell through, Hagane Shizuka was forced to start from scratch, building up a team at the last minute for him to compete in. It was therefore always going to be a struggle to be competitive, but even he didn't expect his team to be as slow as they were. Aware of the task ahead, Shizuka quickly made way for a second paying driver to be recruited to the team, as the prospect of actually qualifying for a race was out of the question. Van Dycke and Albertini drove the cars each Friday morning with absolutely no hope of getting through, but Shizuka was magnanimous in defeat, and a regrouping for 2015 should see the team improve somewhat.