Rugby World Cup 2011 review

THE seventh IRB Rugby World Cup concluded with the right result at the weekend; a victory for the tournament hosts.  New Zealand ended 24 years of hurt, misery and underachievement at rugby’s top level with an 8-7 triumph in the final against France on Sunday at Eden Park.  It was a successful campaign for the All Blacks, but just how good was the 2011 showpiece. . .

Good, but not great

ALTHOUGH there were some shock results and the second-rate teams did better in restricting the heavy landslide scores that are normally associated in the pool stages, the quality of rugby in 2011 had decreased on 2007.  The 07 tournament saw plenty of memorable matches, terrific tries and some sensational scalps.  It didn’t happen this time around, for a variety of reasons.  Teams seemed to focus more on defensive, rather than attacking rugby.  This meant a lack of try-scoring activity, especially in the knockout stages and aside from Tonga’s pool win over France and Ireland humbling Australia, the expected results took their course without too much distress.  There were close scrapes along the way; as Wales pushed the world champions South Africa all the way, Canada beat Tonga and gave France a match and both Romania and Georgia came within an inch of upsetting Scotland, but the 2011 edition will not be remembered for the underdog’s success.

A nation reborn

EXAMPLE: Captain McCaw led New Zealand's road to glory

NEW Zealand’s success in the final completes a proper story, at a time where depression is in the news a lot.  The country has had to deal with a horrible year, which has including a mining disaster and the devastating earthquake in Christchurch back in February.  Finally, the rugby team have managed to put smiles on the Kiwi public, which has had a lot of trauma to put up with this year.  By far, this isn’t the greatest All Blacks side ever put together, but what it does have is not just the abundance to turn on the style, but hold on when it needed to.  Consistently, they played the best rugby over the six weeks, delivered when it counted and got the ultimate prize at the end, a deserved reward for a nation that can feel reborn on its success.

What went wrong for England?

EVERYTHING pretty much went wrong for England; their time in New Zealand was a disaster.  The players have to take the blame for some average performances.  The first half nightmare in the quarter-final against France finally sealed their fate.  Martin Johnson will probably pay for the lack of performance, with his job.  The media didn’t help the team either, with some unsavoury headlines about late night antics involving Mike Tindall.  The team were allowed to enjoy themselves, but maybe they did it too much.  Words fail me with what Manu Tuliagi was thinking when he decided to jump off a ferry even after elimination.  Johnny Wilkinson looked well past his best, Matt Stevens is a liability and indiscipline cost the team on the pitch too, with both Courtney Laws and Dylan Armitage serving suspensions after being reported.  The RFU has to produce an urgent review into the failings of the side and on the evidence of this tournament; England will do well to retain the Six Nations title next spring.

Other disappointments

SCOTLAND had a challenging pool and didn’t get any luck against England and Argentina when they needed it the most.  However, they only scored four tries in four matches and didn’t make the quarter-finals for the first time in RWC history.  Another disappointment was Fiji, who laboured past Namibia, then were simply dreadful against Wales, South Africa and Samoa.  They were expected to challenge seriously for a quarter-final berth, but it never materialised.  Defending champions South Africa looked like a side that was past its best and Peter de Villers has quit off the back of failing to retain the trophy.  Finally, despite reaching the last four, Australia never looked convincing either.  The Aussies have a promising crop of young players and were also desperately unlucky with injuries throughout, but they didn’t hit the heights they looked capable of from the Tri Nations series.  Perhaps this tournament was a bit too soon for the current young generation.  However, the Aussies must continue to invest in this development, as it might make them favourites to regain the trophy in four years time.

Redemption for France

FRENCH rugby looked to be in yet another crisis, especially after that shocking defeat to Tonga in the pool stages.  They scraped into the quarter-finals, but while the rugby experts continue to write them off, I never did that.  They saved their best performance for the final and came within an inch of causing their own upset and clinching the golden prize for the first time.  Three weeks ago, the French deserved to fly home in standard class to a chorus of boos at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris.  Now, they return to their homeland as heroes.  Rugby can be a fickle game at times!

Argentina perform at the highest level

AT LAST, Argentina has got into the Four Nations, formerly known as the Tri Nations next year.  I’m sure South Africa, Australia and New Zealand will appreciate the extra competition, if not the daunting trip to Buenos Aires.  Unfortunately, I do feel this decision has come four years too late.  The Pumas may have not looked at their best, as they did in 2007, but a run to the quarter-finals, giving the All Blacks their most challenging encounter until the final showed that progress has been sustained at least.  The story of the South Americans is once again, among the success stories of a Rugby World Cup.

Improvements from the ‘B’ teams

DELIRUM: Canada surprised Tonga in the pool stages

NAMIBIA aside, there was some great performances from the lower-ranked sides.  Canada beat Tonga and pushed France all the way, Samoa came within an inch of shocking South Africa and even though they didn’t win any matches, the flamboyant Japanese side won many fans in New Zealand.  So did debutants Russia, whose defending was pretty abysmal, but didn’t mind giving it a go and scored tries in all of their four pool matches, including 22 points against Australia.  There was the occasional thrashing, but the days of regular landslide scores in the pool stages of the Rugby World Cup is a thing of the past.

The Welsh journey

TURNED: The Welsh dream ended with this cruel red card for Warburton

NEW Zealand might be world champions, but the story of the Rugby World Cup is the rebirth of Welsh rugby.  Warren Gatland’s side returned with a fourth placed finish and had it not been for a diabolical decision to send off Captain Sam Warburton in the semi-final against France, it could have been even better.  The youngsters in the Welsh pack are incredibly talented and they showed that in abundance.  The likes of Faletau, Halfpenny and Warburton also brought the best out of the experienced players such as Shane Williams.  Wales have now given themselves a massive platform to build on and start February’s Six Nations as overwhelming favourites.  Previously the laughing stock of Northern Hemisphere rugby, they have to be taken seriously now as leading lights in world rugby.

So there you have it, six weeks of cracking rugby is over.  The atmosphere was electric and New Zealand lived up to the billing, being absolutely sensational hosts of the premier competition in world rugby.  The action might not have lived upto the standard of 2007, but there are still many fond memories for fans to take away, especially for the hosts, who can once again claim to be, world champions.

BlackBerry issues - The funny jokes

TROUBLE: The BlackBerry has had a number of issues in the last three days

ONE of the most popular smartphones has suffered three days of constant signalling problems, which has led to a major crash around the world.  Parts of Europe, the US, Asia, Canada and South America have suffered from the crash of the BlackBerry servers.  BBM, e-mails and internet on all phones stopped working, with a crash on the servers seems to be the problem.  Although all systems seem to be back to normal today, many customers want compensation for the trouble and some took to Twitter to raise their frustrations and come up with enough jokes, it could become a no.1 joke selling book for Christmas.  Here is a selection of my favourites;  

what did one #blackberry user say to the other #blackberryuser.....nothing.....so not funny!!!

Dear #blackberry: Thanks for the help! Love, Apple and Android

I have a #BlackBerry, but it doesn't work. The equipment's there, but it's useless. This must be what it feels like to have a vasectomy.

I love you #Blackberry - but if you continue to stop me BBM communicating with my sons, we're so, like, OVER.

"In honor of Steve Jobs, #Blackberry has decided to have a few hours of silence."

Tribute to Steve Jobs, #Blackberry celebrates him with a week of silence. Respect.

#Blackberry's are like elephants : nice to look at, but you wouldn't really want to own one.

#Blackberry down again, Looks like Steve Jobs has reached heaven and turned off the Blackberry server!

what did the iPhone say to the blackberry? iWork. (;

TIP: Turn your iPhone into a Blackberry by selecting Airplane Mode.

Dear Blackberry, what is a keypad? LOL! Sincerely, Apple.

I have a Blackberry and the fault is annoying but reading Twitter you'd think it was equal to the Ethiopian famine #getagripeveryone

How many blackberry users does it take to change a lightbulb? None. If they wanted to see the light, they'd change their phones first.

Today, iPhone owners are luaghing at Blackberry owners and Blackberry owners are laughing at iPhone owners.  I'm laughing at all of you. #HTC

What happened to the days when a blackberry was just a little tasty fruit. Sigh.

F1 2011 - The half-term report

IT IS the halfway point in F1 2011, so it’s time for me to assess how some of the drivers have done in the first ten races;

Sebastian Vettel (1^st in the world championship, 216 points – BEST FINISH: 1^st on six occasions

This season, there can be no doubt that Sebastian Vettel tops the class.  Six victories, seven pole positions and over 70 per cent of laps led so far have shown that he has destroyed the opposition on a regular basis so far.  His win in Turkey, considering he missed all of Friday, due to a practice crash showed how awesome he is at the front of the field.  Sunday’s performance at the Nurburgring was below par, but everyone has a bad weekend during any Grand Prix season.  Sebastian probably needs to still shake off the tag of struggling to race in the pack, but great strategy, sensational one lap ability and a reliable car means it will take a miracle for him to be denied a second championship.

GRADE: A+ (An almost flawless campaign so far, he deserves to be where he is)

Lewis Hamilton (3^rd in the world championship, 134 points – BEST FINISH: 1^st in China, Germany)

Lewis Hamilton has had an inconsistent season so far and for his talents, some of his results have been very disappointing.  Considering where McLaren looked in winter testing, third at halfway point is not bad, but Lewis wants more and at times, has overdriven the car.  Run-ins with Felipe Massa and Pastor Maldonado in Monaco; team-mate Jenson Button in Canada, it has either been silly mistakes or masterful drives in 2011 and nothing in-between.  His comments about the race stewards in Monaco didn’t go down very well either and his relationship with McLaren might be permanently damaged after ‘that’ meeting with Christian Horner in Canada.  Nevertheless, the victories in China and Germany showed us why we love Lewis; for his natural aggression and the ability to outperform the machinery he has at his disposal. 

GRADE: A- (Calm it down Lewis, you have shown what you are capable of)

Mark Webber (2^nd in the world championship, 139 points – BEST FINISH: 2^nd in Turkey)

Mark Webber is under pressure this season, especially as he is now definitely playing second fiddle in the Red Bull camp.  At times, he has shown his hard-charging determination and his fightback from 18^th on the grid to a podium finish in China is testimony to that.  He has consistently finished on the podium of late, but no wins in nearly a year tells its own story.  Sometimes, he can just disappear into thin air, as the races in Australia and Spain would highlight.  Considering he is in the best equipment, Mark should have won races by now, so although there is consistency, the extra edge is missing at the moment.  He knows he has it, but the question is, can he deliver it before the season’s end.

GRADE: B+ (Gradual improvements during the year – but needs to start winning soon)

 

Felipe Massa (6^th in the world championship, 62 points – BEST FINISH: 5^th in Malaysia)

Felipe Massa had a lacklustre start to the season, with a terrible opening weekend in Melbourne.  He only just made Q3 and finished an entire minute behind team-mate Fernando Alonso.  His performance in Turkey was erratic too, especially on a circuit where he has ruled before and the Spanish Grand Prix weekend was an unmitigated disaster.  However, he is a reliable foil for Fernando and on occasion, such as China and Canada, can outperform his ace team-mate.  The results haven’t quite been upto scratch, and that will need work in the second half of the season, especially as Fernando will need his help if he stands any remote chance of a shock comeback.

GRADE: B- (Shown flashes of the old Felipe, but not enough to prove he can win races again)

Vitaly Petrov (9^th in the world championship, 32 points – BEST FINISH: 3^rd in Australia)

The season couldn’t have started any better for Vitaly, as he secured a popular podium finish in the Australian Grand Prix.  Since then, he has struggled to deliver high-profile results, but that is down to the Renault’s lack of development rather than the driver failing to live upto standards.  Fifth in Canada and eighth in Turkey were days when Petrov made the most of a day when others struggled.  Valencia and Silverstone aside, he has threatened points on every weekend and with a better car and more support from a higher scoring team-mate, would achieve far more than his points tally suggests.

GRADE: B+ (A pleasant surprise so far – totally written off those critics he had last term)

Fernando Alonso (4^th in the world championship, 130 points – BEST FINISH: 1^st in Britain)

Personally, I think Fernando is driving the best he has ever done in his career.  Time and again, he has dragged even more than what the Ferrari is capable of.  Not once has he shown his general frustrations this season, even after being lapped in Barcelona having led the first 20 laps of his home event.  His success at Silverstone was fully deserved and second place finishes in Monaco and at the Nurburgring show the fire is still well and truly burning brightly.  Alonso will win another title, especially now he is tied down long-term to Ferrari, but Vettel’s sheer pace means that the wait will have to go on a bit longer.

GRADE: A (With better machinery, he would have given Vettel a run all season)

Nick Heidfeld (8^th in the world championship, 34 points – BEST FINISH: 3^rd in Malaysia)

Things didn’t start well for Robert Kubica’s replacement, as major KERS problems left him down in 13^th in Australia.  It looked much better after a brilliant Malaysia weekend, which saw Nick in the top six, run second in the first stint and end up on the podium.  However, he has failed to deliver on that promise.  He has shown a real lack of pace in qualifying and it has really hurt race efforts.  Despite being a consistent point’s finisher, he hasn’t set the world alight.  With Kubica recovering well, plus the likes of Bruno Senna and Romain Grosjean pushing hard, Nick might as well begin looking around for other motorsport employment next season.

GRADE: C+ (A lacklustre campaign from Mr. Reliable, must do better!)

Rubens Barrichello (16^th in the world championship, 4 points – BEST FINISH: 9^th in Monaco)

He has started over 300 races, but perhaps the time has come for Rubens Barrichello to hang up his helmet and make a gracious exit from the sport he still truly loves.  The 2011 Williams is not a good car and his frustrations at times this season have shown, especially as the car has been unreliable too.  It might not be his decision either, especially if Williams continue to require money from drivers for the seats.  Pastor Maldonado has embarrassed him in qualifying too frequently and although he bought home valuable points in Monaco and Canada, the spark seems to have gone. 

GRADE: D (Going out with a whimper, don’t make the same mistake as many others Rubens!)

Michael Schumacher (10^th in the world championship, 32 points – BEST FINISH: 4^th in Canada)

After a shambolic season opener in Melbourne, Michael has shown flashes of the man we love best.  His drive in Canada reminded us of the glory days and he was desperately unlucky not to get a rostrum.  Like the Williams, he has been severely limited by his machinery this season, but the scrapes he has had with Jaime Alguesuari in Melbourne, Vitaly Petrov in Turkey and Kamur Kobayashi at Silverstone suggest that his judgement is not the same as it was.  He needs more days like Montreal if he doesn’t want to get the label of the ‘worst comeback’ ever!

GRADE: C- (Willing to improve the car, must start beating Rosberg on a regular basis)

Kamur Kobayashi (11^th in the world championship, 27 points – BEST FINISH: 5^th in Monaco)

Kamur Kobayashi is the hottest and greatest racing driver to have ever come out of Japan.  His thrilling attitude towards overtaking has meant that there is never a dull moment when he is around.  Sauber have given him a much better chassis this season and Kamur is starting to produce a string of strong, consistent results.  His enthusiasm for the sport can’t be questioned, especially considering the tough times his country has faced following the devastating tsunami only weeks before the season’s beginning.  Only his qualifying needs to be worked on, but a shrewd team leader he is turning out to be.

GRADE: B- (Great season so far, with few errors of judgement)

Paul di Resta (17^th in the world championship, 2 points – BEST FINISH: 10^th in Australia)

The ability to beat your team-mate on a regular basis makes you a hot property and that certainly is what Paul di Resta is.  He has left Adrian Sutil trailing in his wake at Force India this season and only Valencia and Nurburgring was he significantly outpaced by the German.  However, Paul needs to cut down on the clumsy manoeuvres he is making in races.  He missed out on point’s opportunities in Monaco and Canada by attempting almost impossible overtakes.  With Mercedes chasing after his services long-term, Paul has earnt his right to stay in F1 for the long-term.

GRADE: C+ (Shows great potential, but needs to stay out of trouble more often) 

Jarno Trulli (19^th in the world championship, 0 points – BEST FINISH: 13^th in Australia and Monaco)

Jarno Trulli was dropped from the Team Lotus squad for last weekend’s race and is not hard to see why.  The Italian has been smashed by his team-mate Heikki Kovalainen and continues to complain about the lack of power steering available to his disposal.  Lotus has a new system for him this weekend, so there can now be no excuses.

GRADE: E (Time to move over for the younger generation)

Sebastian Buemi (15^th in the world championship, 8 points – BEST FINISH: 8^th in Australia)

Until Nurburgring, Sebastian Buemi had put in a very good showing in all the races this season.  The Toro Rosso has struggled again this season, but is more firmly in the midfield and four point’s finishes show that Buemi is no slouch in the car.  He has had the measure of Jaime Alguesuari for most of the season and can surely look forward to another season at Toro Rosso next year.

GRADE: C+ (Significant improvements on last year’s horror show)

Adrian Sutil (12^th in the world championship, 18 points – BEST FINISH: 6^th in Germany)

Having been outpaced for large periods this season by Paul di Resta, Adrian has to make massive improvements in the second half of the season.  He threw away points in Canada with some clumsy mistakes and when he has finished races, the team’s strategy has often cost him points.  Nevertheless, he did well to bag some useful points in both Monaco and last Sunday in Germany and although his stock has dropped, the quality on his day is still there.  Considering criminal charges for a nightclub incident in China hang over him, Adrian is doing well to get on with the job in hand.

GRADE: C- (More needed, especially on a Saturday afternoon)

Jenson Button (5^th in the world championship, 109 points – BEST FINISH: 1^st in Canada)

Bad luck has got in the way of Jenson Button in the last few races and that’s a shame, because he has a very good season so far.  Surprisingly, he hasn’t quite managed to get the best out of the new Pirelli tyres, but he won in such brilliant fashion in Canada against all the odds.  He should have won Monaco too and a flying second place in Malaysia proves just why Button is world champion quality.  Saturday’s have been a struggle though and it has just given him far too much to do on too many occasions.

GRADE: B+ (Outstanding on Sundays, too average on Saturdays)

Sergio Perez (14^th in the world championship, 8 points – BEST FINISH: 7^th in Britain)

Although his first campaign will sadly be remembered for the horrific qualifying crash in Monaco, Sergio Perez has proven that Mexico has Got Talent!  Perez’s ability to keep his Pirelli tyres durable has seriously impressed me.  He lost a stunning seventh place in Melbourne to a technical infringement, but has made up for it with strong points results in Spain and at Silverstone.  Sergio is the rookie of the year so far.

GRADE: B- (Able to handle the pressure of Grand Prix racing extremely well)

Vitantonio Liuzzi (20^th in the world championship, 0 points – BEST FINISH: 13^th in Canada)

Tonio has got on with it this season, considering he has a pig of a car to drive.  He has more than matched the Virgin cars this term and although his best years have gone, it’s good to see him outperforming his equipment.  It’s such a shame it took too long to deliver.

GRADE: C (A good effort in rubbish machinery)

The Finishing Straight - Canada (by HappyDude88)

FORMULA One 2011 should definitely come with some sort of health warning, after another unforgettable Grand Prix in Canada last weekend.  The entertaining action this season has certainly dome damage to my health, and I bet it’s the same for many others.

SENSATIONAL: Button drive was a champions fightback

     Jenson Button’s fighting drive to victory on Sunday will go down as ‘The Greatest Comeback Victory.’  Button was 21^st and last with two-thirds of the race gone, so for him to win from there is something really special.  The pace of his McLaren in the dying stages, even though it was on a drying track must have everyone sit up and take notice.  Red Bull certainly will.  Button made up for his team’s strategy errors that cost him a shot at the Monaco Grand Prix and to pressure Sebastian Vettel into a rare error takes a lot of skill and determination, considering how unflappable and invincible the world champion has been this season.  For the past three races now, McLaren have had the fastest car on a Sunday afternoon.  They were beaten in Barcelona due to its lack of overtaking opportunities, Monaco by poor strategy and an unlucky Safety Car, and even in Canada, they threatened to completely throw the advantage away.  Gambling on a wet setup for qualifying on Saturday was such a big risk and although it did end up working, could you imagine if Button hadn’t past Vettel.  This was probably going to be Red Bull’s weakest circuit on the calendar, so if they won here, the rest could write off the season and forget it because Sebastian Vettel would simply be uncatchable.  He still will look difficult to beat, but McLaren do have a chance, as long as one driver calms down and they stop making poor strategy calls.

SPIN: Webber faces the wrong way, after contact with Hamilton

      Whilst Button was driving to victory, Lewis Hamilton was cheering him on in the McLaren hospitality lounge.  However, Hamilton’s impatience cost him again, like in Monaco and has finished any hope of a second world championship this season.  He was frustrated by qualifying fifth and once again, his race effort is what you would expect from a mad motorist on the M25 during rush hour!  I will give Hamilton the benefit of the doubt in regards to his collision with Mark Webber, once the Safety Car had released the pack.  Webber gave him space and Lewis understeered into the Red Bull.  The contact spun Webber around and left him with a mountain to climb.  It was a risky attempt to pass, but there was more opportunity than there was in Monaco with his rash overtaking attempts.  After a near-miss with Michael Schumacher, Hamilton then went onto colliding unbelievably with Button, with the damage ending his race.  Button was slow out of the final chicane on the eighth lap and Hamilton got a run on his team-mate onto the start-finish straight.  Once Jenson started moving across to take his normal racing line, you would have thought that Hamilton, with his experience now, would shuffle to the outside and attempt a pass from there.  Instead, he went for a gap that was narrowing more and more and was always going to close.  It was lucky that Jenson wasn’t taken out either.  His radio call shortly afterwards; “What’s he doing!” said it all.  A collision between the McLaren drivers was always on the cards this season, especially when you think back to their private duels in China and Turkey earlier this year.  The drivers have agreed to put it aside and move on, but we saw what happened between Webber and Vettel last season after their contact at Istanbul Park.  The next few races will be interesting to see how the dynamics flow within McLaren and whether team harmony has been damaged by this touch between its drivers.

TRICKY: Conditions were undriveable at one point

     The Canadian Grand Prix was the first race this season to be rain-affected and the first in the country since 2000.  Despite limited experience of the wet Pirelli tyres to a soaking day of testing in Barcelona and one practice session in Istanbul, I was disappointed to see the drivers prefer a Safety Car start.  The track was not dangerous at this point, and although it was a tough call, I’ve seen standing starts in far worse conditions.  When the race was suspended, it was a late call by race director Charlie Whiting.  As soon as the rain came down and waterlogged the Casino Hairpin on lap 18, the race should have been stopped immediately.  Conditions were undriveable, so why go behind the Safety car unnecessarily for another five laps!  Commonsense needed prevailing.  Despite a two-hour delay afterwards for conditions to improve, it was the right decision to go racing again, despite my initial reluctance.  However, the track was ready to race after one Safety Car lap, not five!  These are the best paid drivers in the world, and of course, danger is an element of this game, but I do think at times that the caution around a race of changeable conditions is absolutely ridiculous.  This is why I prefer the bone dry, standard race, so this caution can be avoided in future.

     Force India had an opportunity to pick up big points in Montreal and their drivers show impatience, which cost the Silverstone based-team dearly.  Paul di Resta was very strong all weekend; only narrowly missing out on Q3 and running as high as fifth.  When he tried an optimistic move on Nick Heidfeld into the final chicane, I could not believe how stupid Paul had just been.  It was a lacklustre and lame overtaking attempt and surely di Resta must have thought that Heidfeld would probably turn in as he had the racing line.  I do agree with the rookie that a drive-through penalty was extremely harsh, considering the contact was minimal and it didn’t destroy Heidfeld’s race, it only wrecked di Resta’s.  He had another run-in with Rubens Barrichello towards the end of the race (which wasn’t picked up by the TV cameras) that ended his race.  The maturity di Resta has shown in his rookie season has impressed me, but these rash moves are costing the team big points.  To make it worse, Adrian Sutil ran into the back of Nico Rosberg behind the Safety Car; such an elementary mistake for an experienced driver and then rather than benefiting from being the first driver to gamble on dry tyres, he dropped it into the unforgiving barriers.  Force India’s main championship rivals are Toro Rosso and Williams.  When you consider Toro Rosso picked up a double points finish; (Jaime Alguesuari was 8^th, Sebastian Buemi 10^th) and Barrichello bought his Williams home in 9^th, Force India could lookback on this as the day they got rooted into ninth place in this year’s constructor’s championship.

     Another team struggling for form is Renault.  They made a very strong start to the season, with two podiums in the first two races, but are struggling to keep up with the developments from a rapidly improving Mercedes and Ferrari.  Nick Heidfeld had a messy Grand Prix and his demise was spectacular to say the least.  Big points were his for the taking, when he drove into the back of Kamur Kobayashi out of turn two.  His front wing was broken, and collapsed underneath his chassis yards later, which led to an acrobatic flying lesson that failed to match Vitaly Petrov’s Malaysian effort.  Petrov did stay out of trouble to record a morale boosting fifth place and there is no doubt that the Russian has improved greatly in his second season of Formula One.  However, Renault will do well to score any more rostrums, and badly need Robert Kubica back.  The Pole’s presence in the team is valuable, as is being proven by this year’s results, compared to last year’s.  

      Canada was a race too soon for Sergio Perez.  Perez was passed fit after three medical examinations, following his qualifying shunt which ended his participation in the Monaco event early.  However, he complained of dizziness after driving Friday’s first free practice session and opted to pull out for his own health.  It was a surprising move, but one that won a lot of praise in the paddock.  There is no point for Sergio to risk his long-term health to take part in one Grand Prix, but it does raise the question of the FIA medical test of how he could pass it in the first place.  For some reason, Sauber’s reserve driver Esteban Gutierrez didn’t travel to Canada, so the team were forced to swallow the bullet and ask McLaren if they could borrow Pedro de la Rosa.  This is the driver they fired from the team with five races left to go in 2010 and it was a fractious relationship to say the least.  Of course, de la Rosa was never going to say ‘no’ to another chance at a racing environment, no matter the team or the consequences.  He got into Q2 and finished a solid, if unspectacular 12^th, which was a good effort at short notice.  Team-mate Kamur Kobayashi continues to rack up the points for the team, with seventh, but for a poor decision on changing to the dry tyre too late, a podium was there for the taking.  Kobayashi did a great job and deserved more for the result he ended up collecting.

FORM: Schumacher was eventually denied a podium position

      So too did Michael Schumacher.  On a track where he has won seven times in the past, he found form and produced the best drive of his failed comeback so far.  Schumacher qualified only 0.1secs behind Nico Rosberg and raced very strongly.  He made up for a rash decision by Ross Brawn to put him on intermediates just before the Montreal downpour and ran as high as second, even briefly challenging his compatriot Vettel for the lead.  Unfortunately, the Mercedes still isn’t on the same path as Red Bull and McLaren and he was overpowered by Webber and Button.  It was a shame, because Michael deserved a podium for his efforts.  Nevertheless, fourth place is the team’s best finish of the season and gives hope that Schuey can still deliver and perform at the highest level.  Let’s hope the revival of his form can continue and prove me wrong (having urged him to walkaway after his mere in Istanbul last month.)

      Hispania Racing deserves a mention too for their improvements.  After the Melbourne shambles, the team has shown little danger of not making the 107 per cent in qualifying and performed admirably in Canada.  Vitantonio Liuzzi finished in 13^th at the chequered flag, which might not sound great, but it could be priceless to the team.  It moves Hispania above Virgin Racing in the constructor’s championship, which would mean extra travel and prize money for the Spanish team that is always strapped for cash.  To make it better, Narain Karthikeyan was right behind him at the finish, as the team beat both Virgin’s of Timo Glock and Jerome D’Ambrosio and Jarno Trulli’s Lotus fair and square.  Even Heikki Kovalainen, who retired with a transmission problem, was running behind them at the time of his departure from the race.  It is nice to see progress in Formula One, no matter how small it is and Hispania are doing a creditable job, considering the laughing stock they were at the start of the season.

      The Bahrain Grand Prix has finally been cancelled and the Indian Grand Prix restored to its initial date of October 30.  There has been a great deal of uncertainty about the race and I’m pleased to see the Bahrain authorities have produced the commonsense that the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone couldn’t see.  Bahrain has got big problems and they need dealing with, so I was flabbergasted to hear the race was rescheduled in the first place.  You can’t play with people lives and the event was bound to be overshadowed by events elsewhere within the country.  No sooner had the race been rescheduled, more video footage of demonstrations was being planted on YouTube.  I hope the country can sort out its pressing issues in a calm and dignified manner and maybe, Formula One can return there in 2012.  However, the running battle over the race organisation has been one which F1 didn’t need.  It definitely has covered itself in any glory.

      Finally, time to crown my Driver of the Day and Driver of the Weekend.  Driver of the Day has to go to Button.  Despite the Hamilton incident and another racing clash, which saw Fernando Alonso eliminated, his searing fightback and the pressure he put on Vettel was immense.  This was his greatest Grand Prix win, for sure.  Driver of the Weekend in Canada is Michael Schumacher.  Maybe a surprising nomination, but whereas Vettel, Button, Hamilton, Felipe Massa and Alonso all made errors at some point during the weekend, Michael didn’t.  He showed his experience in such tricky conditions and his result was well merited.  What a race, what a season!  If Valencia can provide half the drama Montreal managed then I will be satisfied, considering a car park would be more interesting to race on than that particular circuit!  More of the same next week please!

2011 Canadian Grand Prix - Barnstorming Button earns epic win

A RARE error by the invincible Sebastian Vettel on the last lap handed Jenson Button a brilliant victory at the Canadian Grand Prix.  Button recovered from clashes with team-mate Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso during the four hour epic to record a sensational victory for McLaren in Montreal last night.  His searing pace on slick tyres, on an ever-drying track was the key to the 2009 world champion securing his first victory since China 2010.  Vettel still finished second to increase his championship lead, with Mark Webber coming home in third to notch up another double podium result for Red Bull Racing.

TOUCH: McLaren drivers connect, ending Hamilton's chances

     The race nearly ended in disaster for McLaren, as their two British drivers unbelievably collided on lap eight of the race.  Following a Safety Car start, due to the inclement weather conditions, Lewis Hamilton was already behind Button, after he spun Webber around on the restart at the first bend.  Button got out of shape in the final chicane, allowing Hamilton the opportunity to pull alongside on the finishing straight.  However, an oblivious Jenson moved across to take his normal racing line and the pair contacted, with Hamilton hitting the pitwall and Button.  Lewis was out with damage to his rear suspension, which is a surely the final nail in the coffin of his already slim world championship hopes.

     After a drive-through penalty for exceeding the Safety Car speed limit, Button moved onto intermediate tyres and for a while, it seemed to be the right lottery ticket.  His ability to overtake cars in the midfield had several drivers including Alonso, to be triggered into making the switch.  However, it was a liable move, as a rainstorm of biblical proportions, more akin to Malaysia than Montreal, doused the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on lap 18.  After five slow circuits behind the pace car, race director Charlie Whiting suspended the race until conditions drastically improved.  In fact, they got worse, and there was immense frustration for the millions of television viewers, drivers and celebrity fans, including Rihanna, who could only wait for the show to get going again.

     Two hours, ten minutes later and the track looked to be in a racing state and following five more Safety Car laps, racing resumed.  Vettel led Kamur Kobayashi’s Sauber and the Ferrari of Felipe Massa.  Massa’s team-mate Alonso had to queue for intermediate tyres when proper racing got underway again, and seconds later, the Spaniard was out of the race.  He didn’t see a faster Button on the inside of turn three, turned in and contact was inevitable.  Alonso ended up beached on the kerb to record his first DNF since Spa last August, whilst Jenson had to tour back to the pits with a puncture.  Behind another Safety Car, it left the Brit 21^st and dead last, and with half the race already gone, his awful afternoon so far looked completed.

     However, he took the brave decision to move onto slick tyres quicker than most of the frontrunners.  Adrian Sutil was the guinea pig, but he whacked his Force India into the barriers, so Button benefited the most and flew up the order as the rest had to pit for suitable rubber.  All of the sudden, Jenson was an amazing fourth behind another Safety Car, with just Vettel, Michael Schumacher’s Mercedes and Webber ahead of him.  Massa had taken himself out of contention by spinning into the wall whilst lapping the Hispania of Vitantonio Liuzzi, and Nick Heidfeld had clipped Kobayashi in turn two, then made a spectacular exit seconds later, as his damaged Renault front wing collapsed under braking for turn three.  The debris from his car meant a sixth Safety Car period of the afternoon.  Kobayashi’s podium chances were already ruined as he stayed out the longest on worn intermediate tyres.

     So, we were set up for the grandstand finish that everyone had been deprived of in Monaco.  Vettel pulled away with ten laps remaining, whilst Schumacher, Webber and Button got locked into an intense scrap for second spot.  Without DRS, Schumacher was powerless to resist the faster Red Bull and McLaren driver, despite his best efforts.  Before having to give way, Webber had a moment out of the final chicane on some damp track and nearly wiped Button out.  

STUNNER: Button's wide smile said it all on the podium

     Clear of those two drivers, Button hunted down Vettel, lapping some two seconds faster than the German.  On the final tour, Sebastian put a wheel on a damp patch in turn six, nearly spun his Red Bull and Button flashed by in an instant to record his greatest Grand Prix success so far.  His reaction afterwards could tell everyone how thrilled he was and Vettel’s reaction on the podium spoke volumes.

     Schumacher produced the best drive of his failed comeback so far, and deserved a podium for his efforts.  Fourth is still Mercedes GP’s best result of the season.  There was more drama on the last lap, as Massa pipped Kobayashi right on the line to wind up a frustrated sixth and seventh.  Ahead of them, Vitaly Petrov stayed out of trouble to record a solid fifth place result for Renault.  Jaime Alguesuari produced a career-saving performance to come home eighth, the best finish of his career.  As in Monaco a fortnight ago, Rubens Barrichello and Sebastian Buemi completed the point’s scorers.  There was immense frustration for Paul di Resta, who looked good for fifth place at one point.  However, a botched overtaking attempt on Heidfeld at the final chicane left the young Scot with a damaged front wing, a drive-through penalty and a late retirement with suspension problems.

     The Canadian Grand Prix was a race full of drama and produced one of the best comebacks ever seen in the history of the sport.  Sebastian Vettel can be beaten, and it has now been proven.  On a bad weekend for British drivers, with Allan McNish’s horror Le Mans crash and Hamilton’s messy afternoon, Jenson Button survived his own mess to produce a fantastic result.  Valencia in a fortnight’s time will do well to serve up half the excitement Montreal managed to produce.

F1 classic races - Canada

IN A new series, I will be looking back at six classic races every weekend from the country about to stage an event in the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship.  This is my selection, of races in Monaco between 1991 and 2010.  Enjoy the archive!

1991

WINNER: Nelson Piquet (Benetton Ford), 2^nd: Stefano Modena (Tyrrell Honda), 3^rd: Riccardo Patrese (Williams Renault)

NIGEL Mansell totally dominated the 1991 event, but he endured the curse of Murray Walker and the race ended up being won by his bitter rival, Nelson Piquet.  It was Pirelli’s last win in Formula One before they got involved in the sport again this season.  The Williams Renault was turning into the fastest car and they annexed the front row in qualifying.  Mansell beat his team-mate Riccardo Patrese off the startline, with Ayrton Senna giving vain chase in third.  On lap 25, Senna went out with electronic issues, which had also claimed his team-mate Gerhard Berger.  The scene was set for a Williams 1-2, but Patrese’s gearbox starting misbehaving and he dropped to fourth.  On the last lap, Mansell was waving to the crowd in celebration, whilst Walker was using his line ‘his first win of the 1991 season for BBC viewers.’  Round the Casino hairpin and the Williams ground to a halt, with a sudden gearbox failure.  It let Piquet in for a lucky win, whilst the impressive Stefano Modena earnt his best ever Grand Prix finish in a Tyrrell Honda. 

1995

SOLE: Win for Jean Alesi in his career came emotionally in 1995

WINNER: Jean Alesi (Ferrari), 2^nd: Rubens Barrichello (Jordan Peugeot), 3^rd: Eddie Irvine (Jordan Peugeot)

ON HIS 31^st birthday, Jean Alesi secured an emotional and popular victory in Montreal.  To add fuel to the fire, the Frenchman was driving Ferrari No.27, driven in the past by the Canadian darling, Gilles Villeneuve.  Michael Schumacher had been storming to an easy win, but the champion suffered a gear selection problem, which robbed the German of certain victory.  Thanks to a late tangle between Martin Brundle and Gerhard Berger, Schumacher still finished fifth.  Alesi only just made it to the line, as he spluttered to a halt out of fuel on the slowing down lap.  For once, his luck held together when he needed it most.  Gearbox failure left an unhappy Damon Hill on the sidelines and this allowed the two Jordan’s of Rubens Barrichello and Eddie Irvine through into an unlikely double podium result for the underperforming squad.

1998

WINNER: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 2^nd: Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Playlife), 3^rd: Eddie Irvine (Ferrari)

IN AN incredible event, Michael Schumacher produced a stirring comeback drive to win and relight a fading championship challenge.  He was helped by a miserable day for the all-conquering McLaren’s, who both retired.  Mika Hakkinen’s gearbox got jammed at a restart, whilst David Coulthard pulled off with transmission failure.  There had been a restart after Alexander Wurz clipped Jean Alesi and barrel-rolled his Benetton three times into the gravel trap.  On the second start, Ralf Schumacher spun his Jordan wildly, and Alesi, limping around with no front wing after contact with Eddie Irvine, was collected by Jarno Trulli.  The Prost car ended up on the top of Alesi’s spare chassis.  Irvine recovered from a puncture to finish a fighting third.  Even after the McLaren’s disappearance, Schumacher Snr didn’t make life easy for himself.  On lap 20, he returned to the racetrack after a scheduled pitstop and pushed the Williams of Heinz-Harald Frentzen off the circuit.  Patrick Head was furious, and with good justification.  Schumacher was given a stop-go penalty and then survived a vicious attempt by Damon Hill to put him in the wall on his comeback charge.  Hill was accused of dangerous weaving by his former enemy, and his luck ran out, as his throttle cut out, which wrecked his podium chances.  On a charge, Schumacher hunted down the long-time leader Giancarlo Fisichella, got ahead after his second stop and went onto record a stunning victory.  After his rolling antics early on, Wurz did very well to finish a superb fourth in the spare Benetton.

2005

WINNER: Kimi Raikkonen (McLaren Mercedes), 2^nd: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 3^rd: Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari)

THIS was a case of waiting for your rivals to falter and Kimi Raikkonen did that in 2005.  Raikkonen was behind the two Renault’s and his team-mate for the majority of the afternoon, but benefited from their dramas to win in Canada.  First, Giancarlo Fisichella crawled around to retire with a total hydraulic failure, gutted to lose a potential race victory.  Next, runaway championship leader Fernando Alonso made a rare mistake touched a wall and terminally damaged his rear suspension.  Finally, Juan Pablo Montoya was so incensed by a poor McLaren strategy call, that he exited the pits with the red light still on during a Safety Car period.  The Colombian was promptly disqualified.  Raikkonen survived a late steering scare to hold off Michael Schumacher for his third win of the season, whilst Rubens Barrichello came through from a pitlane start to finish third for Ferrari.

2007

LUCKY: Kubica escaped serious injury from this smash in 2007

WINNER: Lewis Hamilton (McLaren Mercedes), 2^nd: Nick Heidfeld (BMW Sauber), 3^rd: Alexander Wurz (Williams Toyota)

A STAR was well and truly born in this event in 2007, as Lewis Hamilton overcame four nerve-racking Safety Car periods to earn his first ever Formula One victory.  His feat was overshadowed by a sickening crash for the BMW Sauber of Robert Kubica.  On lap 27, shortly after the first Safety Car period to recover Adrian Sutil’s crashed Spyker, Kubica clipped the Toyota of Jarno Trulli on the rundown to the Casino hairpin.  The Pole’s front wing went underneath his chassis, launching him airborne and violently into the crash barriers.  The car totally disintegrated and the remains rolled back across the road to the opposite guardrail.  Incredibly, Kubica escaped with just a sprained ankle and would miss only one event in his full recovery.  Aside for one lap during the first Safety Car, Hamilton led throughout and stayed cool under intense scrutiny, on a day when the more experienced got into trouble.  Both Felipe Massa and Giancarlo Fisichella were disqualified for repeating Juan Pablo Montoya’s mistake in 2005, by charging back into the race with the red light still on at the pitlane exit.  Hamilton’s team-mate, Fernando Alonso went off the track four times at the first corner during the race, and finished a lame 7^th, having been sensationally passed in the closing stages by Takuma Sato’s Super Aguri Honda.  Hamilton cruised over the line relatively comfortably to head home Nick Heidfeld’s BMW and Alexander Wurz, who secured his first podium for ten years.  He’d started down in 19^th on the grid, which highlighted the chaos that was Canada 2007.

2010

WINNER: Lewis Hamilton (McLaren Mercedes), 2^nd: Jenson Button (McLaren Mercedes), 3^rd: Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)

LEWIS Hamilton managed his tyres the best last season to earn back-to-back wins on Formula One’s return to North America following a one year sabbatical.  Hamilton led Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso home, in the only event that saw drivers having to make multiple pitstops on a dry racing day.  Had it not been for some rotten luck in traffic against Jarno Trulli and Karun Chandok, Alonso might well have stolen the win for Ferrari.  Sebastian Vettel nursed a gearbox issue to finish fourth, just ahead of team-mate Mark Webber, who’d tried a different race strategy in an effort to win, but wound up fifth.  In his comeback season, Michael Schumacher drove appallingly and got criticised for squeezing Robert Kubica onto the grass and Felipe Massa into the wall.  He finished in 11^th.