From the return of Michael Schumacher to Sebastian Vettel's historic triumph, Formula One made the right noises in 2010. By Shoumeshwar Sen
The 2010 F1 championship proved to be one of the most thrilling seasons ever in the history of the sport. A see-saw season witnessed the lead go back-and-forth between Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, Red Bull's Mark Webber, McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and eventual champion Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull. It was a season full of twists and turns, and the only time the man who became the youngest-ever champion in Formula One history, led the points tally was on the day that he clinched the crown in the final race at Abu Dhabi.
Look at the highlights in an incredible 2010 season.
Return of the King
Seven-time champion Michael Schumacher decided to come out of a three-year retirement when he signed a deal with Mercedes GP for the 2010 season. However, the legendary driver struggled to get to grip with F1's new tyres along with Mercedes' tendency to understeer. As a result, Schumi had a woeful season, being outdone by younger team-mate Nico Rosberg and finishing no higher than fourth in any of the Grand Prix.
Karun Chandhok secures a race seat with HRT
In 2010, Karun Chandhok became only the second Indian, after Narain Karthikeyan, to race in Formula One when he signed for the Hispania Racing Team. However, Chandhok had to sit out the majority of the second half of the season as a struggling HRT juggled driving responsibilities between Sakon Yamamoto, Bruno Senna and Christian Klien. However, the Indian racer managed to finish above his team-mates in the overall drivers' standings thanks to two 14th-place finishes in 10 races.
Lotus back in F1
Schumi's return aside, another awaited comeback of the season was that of Lotus. The team was back in Formula One after a 16-year gap. As it turned out, Lotus proved to be the best of the rookie teams during the course of the season, finishing tenth in constructors' standings, ahead of HRT and Virgin Racing.
Red Bulls take each other out in Turkey
Sebastian Vettel was hotly tipped to get the better of older Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber throughout the course of the season. But Webber had other plans! In Turkey, Webber found he lacked the pace of Vettel at the Istanbul Park circuit but had track position over the German. Vettel, clearly believing as the quicker driver that he could force his way through, tried to overtake. The pair ended up in a freak collision while McLaren's Lewis Hamilton sneaked his way to victory.
Team orders in Germany
The team orders row at the German Grand Prix became one of the main talking points of the 2010 season. Ferrari's Felipe Massa had dominated the race but was clearly slower than team-mate Fernando Alonso, who relentlessly tried to force a way pass. The Spaniard complained on the team radio and Massa was instructed to make way for Alonso to eventually take victory in Germany.
Ferrari's Monza revival
Fernando Alonso appeared to be dead and buried in the title race when Ferrari set up at their home race, the Italian Grand Prix. The Spaniard delivered victory at Monza despite not having the quickest car on the grid, and kick-started the scarlet resurgence in the second-half of the season. However, the Ferrari hierarchy was careful not to employ any team orders after the German GP fiasco.
Force India's best season yet
Force India carried their 2009 form into 2010 and ended the year seventh in the championship – the best for the team since 2002, as erstwhile Jordan. Vijay Mallya's outfit finished the season just a point behind Williams and could have even been sixth, but the team faded somewhat by mid-season as other midfield rivals (Williams and BMW Sauber) closed the performance gap. Their best race results were the fifth-place finishes in Malaysia and Belgium.
Hulkenberg takes Pole in Brazil
The build-up to the Brazilian Grand Prix was dominated by the title showdown between Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull. Red Bull were expected to run away with pole as they did almost entire season. However, Williams driver Nico Hulkenberg took a gamble on tyre selection for the third and final qualifying session in wet conditions. The decision paid off in style as 'The Hulk' out-paced the rest of the field by more than a second for Pole at Interlagos to get Williams their first Pole position since 2005.
The Polish warrior
Renault were resurgent with Robert Kubica managing to get the best out of the R30 as the team won back respect in the aftermath of the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix 'Crashgate' scandal. The Polish racer demonstrated at Monaco in particular, while also in Australia and Abu Dhabi, that when he gets a fully competitive car, he will be very hard to beat for even the Ferraris, Red Bulls or McLarens.
The Red Bull RB6
Finally, a mention has to be made about the Red Bull RB6, the finest and most consistent car on the grid in terms of pace. Adrian Newey's creation was a 'monster' that was immensely quick all year long, especially at qualifying. The RB6 managed to claim 15 pole positions and nine race wins from the 19 Grand Prix in the calendar, and won both the Constructor and Driver titles. It looks set to go down as one of the greatest F1 cars of recent years.
So a thriller of a season came to an end with Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull the victors in the Driver and Constructor categories, respectively. With new technical regulations being introduced by the FIA for 2011, Formula One fans will be hoping that next year would provide even more thrills and spills in the pinnacle of motorsport.
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