F1 2011 - Computer Game Review

By Jason Wright (Entertainment Expert)

WHEN Codemasters released F1 2010 this time last year, it quickly received wide praise and applause as it was really the first game that actually captured the imagination of the sport.  This therefore put a lot of pressure on Codies, a company with a rich history of producing award-winning racing games, to deliver and most importantly, take it up to the next level with F1 2011.

     To start with, the essence of the game remains the same, built again upon the Career mode with its tagline, “Be the Driver, Live the Life, Go Compete.”  Starting with the standard pre-season interview with a member of the world’s press (David ‘Crofty’ Croft from BBC Radio 5 Live is used again on the UK version), the player has a much wider choice of teams to start their life in the sport with.  Obviously, all the options are midfield/backmarker teams, including the three ‘B’ teams, Team Lotus, Virgin Racing and HRT but it does gives the option to either begin the path to the front of the field quicker or longer for those new to the game.

     Essentially, the pit garage design remains the same from F1 2010, with constant reports from your race engineer both in the garage and on the track.  Team to driver reactions after qualifying and race are now implemented to give more a feel as to whether the chemistry within the team setup is strong or crumbling massively.  The agent that was featured in F1 2010 has been unceremoniously and thankfully, dumped.

     In game modes, two new modes have joined the setup this year.  Multiplayer returns after a year away, in a classic split-screen format.  Most exciting is the introduction of a co-op championship which allows 2 players to race as team-mates, so finally, an equal way to battle it out and see who the best is.  Online mode is also enhanced with it now being able to hold up to 16 players in one game session at a time.

     In the game itself, all of the 2011 rule changes in real life have been adapted into the game.  KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) and DRS (Drag Reduction System) give the player a boost to improve their performance.  Also the new Pirelli tyres are featured and have modelled to act in realistic form with a set of tyres only lasting 10 to 15 laps, depending on the circuit, until they “fall off the cliff.”  Although a promise was made to reintroduce mechanical retirements on the game, no evidence has been shown yet so it’s hard to prove whether it is possible.

WELCOME: The Safety Car makes a much anticipated return

     However one aspect that has been welcomed by many is the return of the Safety Car, which was last featured in an F1 game back in 2001.  It is not known yet if it can be deployed for any AI incidents on track but it can be deployed during heavy rain conditions.  In addition, red flags have returned for the first time in an F1 game since 1998 for instances when a crash is so severe, the Safety Car can’t get round the track.

     Another new feature is ‘Race Director.’  Accessed via the pause menu during a race, it allows the player to not only look at the latest race standings but browse through each driver’s lap times and see whether they are performing upto standard or starting to drop off the pace.

GUARANTEE: More wheel-to-wheel combat is expected

     Finally, not just Singapore and Abu Dhabi (in its day-night element) can be played in night conditions as some circuits are also playable as night races.  The new Indian GP circuit is also featured but not the cancelled Bahrain GP despite rumours that it may still feature on the game despite its axing earlier in the season.  Improved modelling in the AI has also promised to make the game more challenging for experienced racers.  The blogger founder Simon Wright asked John Boden for his thoughts on the game via Twitter; “It’s very good, but very hard at the same time.  They’ve tried to make it as close to life as possible.  It is quite rewarding though and I’d go as far as to say it’s the best ‘pure racing,’ game I’ve played.”

     Overall, my verdict of F1 2011 is that there is plenty more to offer for the next edition.  It beats F1 2010 quite comfortably in terms of the game style but it still hasn’t quite made the next leap forward in gaming levels.  Nevertheless, this is definitely another hit F1 title for both the sport and Codies in general.

     F1 2011 is available now for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Windows. Handheld editions for the Nintendo 3DS and PlayStation’s new Vita handheld console will be released at a later date.

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!

2010 Korean Grand Prix - The Conclusions

IN THIS piece, I will be assessing ten key features from each Grand Prix weekend from the 2010 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.  With three races remaining, it was a new venture for Formula One into Korea, which put on a spectacular show.  The title race took several more twists, but are more going to come in the last three weeks of a gripping season.  Here is a round-up then of the race of the season so far. . .

Fernando Alonso – Champion-Elect

AFTER a dismal day at Silverstone, Fernando Alonso fell nearly fifty points behind the championship leaders and vowed he would win the championship.  At Spa, a costly accident looked to have buried his chances for good, but what a fightback in the last four races.  He now is the red-hot favourite for his third title, after a stunning drive on Sunday afternoon.  Alonso knew Ferrari were going to be strong in Korea, so he did well to contain his frustration at being beaten to the front row by those pesky Red Bulls.  On Sunday, he pressured Mark Webber into a rare mistake, and kept Sebastian Vettel honest all day.  Even though Vettel looked to have the race under control, one mistake and the Ferrari was through.  Like in Bahrain though, a failure with the Red Bull allowed Alonso to cruise through to his fifth win of the season, his fourth in the last seven races.  You would be a brave man not to back Fernando now for title glory in Abu Dhabi in three weeks time. . .

Red Bull Racing – From Saturday Heaven to Sunday Hell

The first sector of the Korea circuit was never going to suit the Red Bull cars, so for them to button up the front row in qualifying spelt ominous signs for the closest opposition.  Twenty-four hours later, they were reflecting on their first double DNF of the season, and it can’t have come at a worse time.  Mark Webber has had a near-perfect season, but he had one of those slow, frustrating spins early in the race under green flag conditions.  The Aussie was powerless to control his spinning missile and Nico Rosberg unluckily collected the remains.  It was only Webber’s second non-score of the season and after his previous retirement, which was THAT scary flip over Heikki Kovalainen in Valencia; he won next time out at Silverstone.  He also won imperiously in Brazil last year, so who’s to say that Webber’s out of the battle yet.  It was a damaging crash, but not a terminal blow.  The same can’t be said for Sebastian Vettel though, who had to endure the cruel misfortune of a spectacular engine failure with just eight laps to go.  Vettel put a very philosophical face on this setback in the pits, but by being a full race win behind Alonso now with two races to go, it looks like he will have to wait until 2011 to get his hands on the cherished prize.

Jenson Button – Time to Back Lewis Hamilton

He has battled on very gamely all season, but Jenson Button even admitted after his horror race on Sunday that his chances of retaining his championship are now all but impossible.  Sunday’s conditions were meant to put Button in the driving seat.  After all, he won his two races this season in similar conditions.  However, he had no grip, no confidence and the aggressive set-up on his car just chewed up its tyres.  By the end of the race, only the Hispania’s were lapping slower than Jenson, which says it all really.  With Lewis Hamilton bringing his A game to Korea and winding up with an excellent second place, Button now must play the team role and help McLaren and Hamilton out in Brazil and Abu Dhabi if they are to walkaway with any of the top prizes this season.

Wet Weather – Lack of Racing Sets a Dangerous Precedent

Safety is absolutely paramount in Formula One, but I shared the frustration of Lewis Hamilton and BBC commentator Martin Brundle at the length of time that the Safety Car stayed out on the track.  The first attempted start had to be suspended and rightfully so, as the Korean track looked like a lake, not a race circuit.  However, on the restart – another thirteen laps were run under yellow flag conditions, when the track looked almost ready for intermediate tyres, which Hamilton confirmed to millions on his team radio.  These drivers are paid millions of pounds to go racing, and without wanting to sound too naïve, they could have gone racing at least four/five laps earlier than they did.  This sets a dangerous precedent for the future; maybe it is time to limit the driver’s voice on these decisions.

Nico Rosberg – An Innocent Victim

Nico Rosberg was the most unluckiest driver on Sunday in Korea, even more so than Sebastian Vettel.  Rosberg has quietly gone about his job all season, in quite frankly, a poor car.  He has trounced Michael Schumacher and starred again on this new track, qualifying an outstanding 5^th on the grid.  On the race start, he ducked underneath Lewis Hamilton and was threatening Alonso, when Mark Webber’s spinning Red Bull came into his path.  Despite Rosberg’s best efforts, including driving on the grass, he couldn’t avoid Webber and the contact ripped his suspension off and sent him off the track, and into a painful retirement.  Schumacher’s strong 4^th place suggested how good the Mercedes was in these mixed conditions.  Had Rosberg managed to avoid the out of control Webber, who knows where he could have finished in the final reckoning.

Adrian Sutil – A Chaotic Afternoon

In 2009, Adrian Sutil should have had a big WARNING sign pointed onto the back of his Force India, as he had a scenic ambition of crashing into other drivers.  He has got rid of that tag this year, with some very solid drives – most notably in Malaysia, Spain, Valencia and Spa.  However, it was a return to the bad old days in Korea, with a series of crazy, chaotic and unnecessary incidents.  Sutil was reckless for the most of the day, but you couldn’t fault his commitment to the cause.  His move on Jenson Button was fair, if brutal, when the Brit was shoved off the track and he had a feisty dice with Jaime Alguesuari too.  His downfall was the Sauber drivers, who he seemed to be passing twenty times in the race.  Eventually, he hit a damp patch, rammed into the side of Kamur Kobayashi and broke his steering column, finishing his race.  At least we found out that Kobayashi’s Sauber can take a strong hit and survive.  Later, it was revealed Sutil knew of a brake problem, yet kept crashing and failed to report his issue to the race stewards.  A $10,000 fine and a five-place grid penalty for Brazil seem like a suitable punishment, but despite the craziness, you can’t fault a guy for trying!

Vitantonio Liuzzi – Career-Saving Drive?

Whereas Sutil had one of those days, when he seemed like he was going to crash into anything, team-mate Vitantonio Liuzzi picked up some massive points that might have saved his Formula 1 career.  For the sixth time this season, Liuzzi was bundled out in Q1, then bitched like a typical, frustrated Italian driver does, blaming everything but himself.  Whether it was the conditions or something in his breakfast porridge, but you couldn’t fault him in the race.  He took advantage of Williams’ late tyre issues and kept Robert Kubica in his sights throughout the race.  Liuzzi’s sixth place result equals his best result ever (set in China 2007).  Will it be enough to keep him at Force India?  It is a tough decision for Vijay Mallya, but this result will have done him the power of good.

Sebastian Buemi – Another Man under Grave Pressure

Another man in the paddock who is under grave pressure is Sebastian Buemi.  After a promising rookie season, the Swiss driver’s momentum has stalled this season and he made another rookie mistake in the race, locking his brakes in a panic and smashing into Timo Glock’s Virgin.  Virgin couldn’t believe it, as they reckoned Glock might have scored a precious championship point and Buemi picked up a similar penalty to Sutil for Brazil.  It has been a tough season for Toro Rosso, but Jaime Alguesuari has done a better job, so Buemi needs to up his game over the winter for next season.

Vitaly Petrov – Has He Just Slammed Into The F1 Exit Door!

If Liuzzi thought he was under pressure and Buemi is struggling, Vitaly Petrov may well have kissed his chances goodbye to racing in F1 next season.  Despite his undoubted pace, he looks set to join Piquet and Grosjean in the Renault reject bin.  After his customary qualifying spin and the grid penalty for his Japanese startline antics, Petrov drove calmly in the early stages, and made a smart move onto intermediates in the early stages.  The move left him up in 7^th, and two places ahead of Robert Kubica, who was having a quiet day.  Then, on Lap 41 came the expected . . . Petrov crashes again!  Another Renault that ends up looking like Bambi after he had been born and a stern face from Eric Bouillier on the pitwall said it all.  Petrov’s inconsistency has cost Renault a shot at fourth place in the constructor’s championship, whereas at Mercedes, Schumacher has at least been consistently scoring minor points to back up Rosberg.  The way the Russian looked after the crash, shaking his head with his helmet firmly on, I think he may have just realised that this was his most expensive mistake of the season.

Korea’s First Taste of F1 – the Final Verdict

Considering we had absolutely no idea of what to expect, Korea certainly didn’t disappoint.  We were told that the circuit looked like a building site, but it is an impressive little venue.  Finally, after years of constant frustration, Hermann Tilke has created another good circuit.  Why can’t he make more decent tracks like this one and Istanbul, yet ruin the old Hockenheim, and produce mediocre attempts at Bahrain and Malaysia remains a mystery!  Changes have to be made to the pitlane entry and exit, as that looked precariously dangerous, but at such short notice, they did a good job.  When it is all complete for next year, Korea should look like a stunning spectacle.  It’s a big thumbs-up from me.

2010 Korean Grand Prix - Alonso Gifted Sensational Victory

FERNANDO Alonso took a giant leap towards a third world championship, with a priceless win at the Korean Grand Prix.  The Ferrari driver was gifted victory at the Yeongam circuit, when Sebastian Vettel was forced to retire with a blown engine, with just eight laps to go.  In a sensational grand prix, that was heavily delayed and finished in darkness, both Mark Webber and Jenson Button also failed to score, while second place breathes new life into Lewis Hamilton’s faltering championship bid.

After a dry first couple of days at the inaugural event, raceday was dominated by grey clouds and constant rain.  After a ten minute delay to the start, FIA race director Charlie Whiting set the cars off behind the Safety Car.  Three laps later, the standing water was so much on the recent new surface that the race was suspended and held up for 55 minutes.  Another Safety Car restart and 17 frustrating laps later, the proper racing begun and Vettel, who had started on pole position took complete command of the race.

Whilst Vettel was faultless, his team-mate wasn’t.  Webber made a rare error on Lap 19, and ran wide onto some Astroturf, spinning into the concrete wall.  The Australian was powerless to prevent his Red Bull bouncing across the road and collected the innocent Nico Rosberg in the Mercedes.  Mud and debris flew onto the track, as both cars pirouetted into the barriers and out of the event.  A Safety Car came out to clear up this mess, and Button’s race was also to be severely compromised by a poorly timed pitstop, and being unable to keep heat in his intermediate tyres.  He was left floating on the water, and a late race spin consigned the defending world champion to a disappointing 12^th place finish, and being 43 points behind the championship lead, with 50 left to play for, realistically finishes off his championship prospects.

Although Alonso and Hamilton kept Vettel honest, the German always had some extra pace in his back pocket.  Sadly, with just eight laps remaining, his car sounded sick and Alonso zoomed past the ailing Red Bull into turn one.  Moments later, Vettel’s engine blew up in spectacular fashion, which also leaves his chances of winning a maiden championship look very remote.  Alonso reeled off the remaining seven laps to secure his fourth win in seven races, and give him the lead in the world championship for the first time since Australia.  

Like Button, Hamilton struggled with grip from his intermediate tyres all day, but drove round the issues fantastically to finish second and rekindle his championship hopes.  Hamilton did jump Alonso in the pitstops, when the Ferrari was delayed by a loose wheel nut, but ran wide at turn one on a mid-race Safety Car restart and allowed Alonso back through.  That Safety Car came out after Sebastian Buemi sideswiped Timo Glock in the braking zone for turn three.

Felipe Massa scored some priceless points for Ferrari’s constructors’ championship cause, with a podium finish, and Michael Schumacher carried his Suzuka form into Korea to finish an excellent fourth, his best result of the season.  Rubens Barrichello looked set for fifth, but his tyres were worn down so much in the closing stages that he was gobbled up by the quiet Robert Kubica and Vitantonio Liuzzi’s Force India.  Barrichello wound up seventh, with a late pitstop dropping Nico Hulkenberg to 10^th.  Kubica picked up some solid points again and Liuzzi’s drive could be a career-saving one, especially on a day where Adrian Sutil hit almost everything, and eventually made a clumsy lunge on Kamur Kobayashi to break his front suspension and retire with seven laps remaining.  Kobayashi survived this attack to claim eighth, with Nick Heidfeld backing up his team-mate, winding up ninth.

Alonso now has an eleven point lead in the world championship, with Webber and Hamilton all within a race win of the new championship leader.  Two races remain, and another stunning grand prix that left everyone breathless, you wonder what will happen next in Brazil, the scene of Button’s world championship clincher last year.