Through eighteen-and-a-half races a title was won by the unexpected Jenson Button, who, after years of fading into the background, produced an opening display worthy of praise which also solidified his position in the lead of the driver’s championship.
However, his opening flourish at the hands of a rookie Brawn GP team became a contradiction to the second half of the season, where the tables were turned and the leaders became the followers.
As teams fought to edge their way around the new regulations and improve their performance, gaps were closed and the status quo was overturned. We truly had a season of two halves, where the lead drivers and teams differed between the two. And some profited more than others.
There is no denying that Brawn GP followed their electric first half to the season with a down turn in domination, doing enough to claim both the drivers' and team’s titles, but allowing us to reflect on a lucky end to the campaign. Damage limitation was at times made too easy for them and, odd events aside, could have left them without either title.
Button also proved that, behind the wheel of a slower car, he is not able to perform at the level he has shown he is capable of in a stronger car. As a result, many have questioned his credentials, although there is no denying that it has been inspirational to see his spark reignited and his passion expressed constantly.
The Winners
Barrichello, on the other hand, appeared in parts to use Button’s fall to his advantage and created a title opportunity seemingly out of nowhere. His powerful triumphs in the European and Italian Grand Prix highlighted his credentials to further sustain a career and become the first driver in the history of the sport to reach a tri-centennial number of Grand Prix.
Such an improvement provided us a second compelling story to the Brawn GP fantasy. Button was not to have it all his own way. In what may have been Barrichello’s last chance at ultimate glory, it came into fruition.
Red Bull took a slight advantage as the Brawn team floundered, but reliability issues—especially for Webber—put an end to any serious title challenges. On more occasions than not, though, their pace allowed them to outclass Brawn. Webber's defining domination of the German Grand Prix and Vettel’s collection of victories highlighted growing aspirations for the Milton Keynes-based team.
The revelatory performances in the second half of the season were fitting for Button’s predecessors and the two former champions, Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen.
Even before Massa’s unfortunate injury, Kimi Raikkonen was showing great poise and pace on the track, collecting podiums along the way and providing a high amount of momentum, which carried him into a more credible points tally. A solitary victory for the Flying Finn, although alone in its occurrence, was enough to question Ferrari’s decision to ditch Kimi. He stepped up his game vastly after last season's downfall.
The Ferrari car was inconsistent, however, and Ferrari’s clumsy decisions to name first Luca Badoer and then a greedy Fisichella to the second seat cost them dearly. One point separated them and large rivals Mclaren. Such a small victory for Mclaren could easily have been averted. Next season, therefore, requires improvements.
Mclaren’s season, more than most, was a Jekyll and Hyde one, indeed. Kubica was the star of that season and Lewis seemed to luck himself into glory rather than gain it on merit. Button won more races than Hamilton achieved last year, giving the experienced Brit more of an argument to his title win.
It was therefore massively refreshing to see Lewis rise out of the ashes of Mclaren’s dismal opening half of the season by producing the best display of speed and tenacity seen by any driver in the final stages. If it hadn’t been for his error in the latter stages of Monza, his dominance would have been even more extravagant.
Providing Mclaren continues his upward trend, Lewis will definitely be an early favourite for next year’s title. The determination and raw talent evident in his debut season appears to have returned. Lewis has seemingly matured beyond expectation.
The Losers
One team that sadly drifted from a promising early season pace was Toyota. Timo Glock is a driver with good things in store and over the seasons, Jarno Trulli has shown a level of consistency that warrants him a positive future reputation. The Trulli train rather surprisingly has even not had many runs this year.
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