Who was the most impressive driver throughout the European Grand Prix weekend?
See below for my pick of the best drivers in the European Grand Prix.
Review each driver’s race weekend in detail below and vote for who you thought was the most impressive driver.
For your consideration
Here are some of the drivers who impressed me during the European Grand Prix weekend:
Sebastian Vettel – Untroubled by the chasing pack, never looked like being beaten.
Fernando Alonso – His usual speed and consistency in the race allowed him to prise the leading Red Bulls apart.
Jaime Alguersuari – Has clearly turned a corner with the 2011 tyres, rising from 18th to eighth.
Adrian Sutil – Another driver who is thriving in the middle part of the season, in the points for the second time in three races after qualifying well.
Sergio Perez – A welcome return from injury, he almost scored a point with a well-executed one-stop strategy.
Compare all the drivers
Review what happened to each driver over the race weekend and compare their performances with their team mates using the links below:
Red Bull: Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber
McLaren: Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton
Ferrari: Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa
Mercedes: Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher
Renault: Nick Heidfeld and Vitaly Petrov
Williams: Rubens Barrichello and Pastor Maldonado
Force India: Adrian Sutil and Paul di Resta
Sauber: Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez
Toro Rosso: Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari
Lotus: Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen
HRT: Narain Karthikeyan and Vitantonio Liuzzi
Virgin: Timo Glock and Jerome d’Ambrosio
Vote for your driver of the weekend
Which driver impressed you the most throughout the European Grand Prix weekend? Cast your vote below and have your say in the comments.
Who was the best driver of the European Grand Prix weekend?
- Jerome d'Ambrosio (1%)
- Timo Glock (1%)
- Vitantonio Liuzzi (0%)
- Narain Karthikeyan (1%)
- Jarno Trulli (0%)
- Heikki Kovalainen (0%)
- Jaime Alguersuari (26%)
- Sebastien Buemi (0%)
- Sergio Perez (3%)
- Kamui Kobayashi (0%)
- Paul di Resta (0%)
- Adrian Sutil (2%)
- Pastor Maldonado (0%)
- Rubens Barrichello (0%)
- Vitaly Petrov (0%)
- Nick Heidfeld (0%)
- Nico Rosberg (1%)
- Michael Schumacher (1%)
- Felipe Massa (1%)
- Fernando Alonso (33%)
- Jenson Button (0%)
- Lewis Hamilton (3%)
- Mark Webber (1%)
- Sebastian Vettel (28%)
Total Voters: 463
You need an F1 Fanatic account to vote. Register an account here or read more about registering here.
Canadian Grand Prix result
Jenson Button was voted the best driver of the Canadian Grand Prix weekend.
1. Jenson Button – 61.0%
2. Michael Schumacher – 27.8%
3. Sebastian Vettel – 2.2%
Rate the Race: European Grand Prix
Don’t forget to cast your vote in the ‘rate the race’ poll as well:
Image © Red Bull/Getty images
Slr (@slr)
27th June 2011, 17:50
So… Where do we vote?
Todfod (@todfod)
27th June 2011, 17:54
LOL. I thought there was something wrong with my browser
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
27th June 2011, 17:57
Can you not see the poll?
Slr (@slr)
27th June 2011, 18:01
It’s okay now.
kowalsky
27th June 2011, 22:54
vettel without a doubt, pole, fastest lap and race win. What else?
Keith, jarno trulli said something interesting about how, perfect reliability, is hurting the sport.
What is your opinion on it?
spankythewondermonkey (@spankythewondermonkey)
28th June 2011, 8:27
yep, had to be SV. very nearly a perfect race weekend, so deserves the vote this time around. his only mistake was The Finger ;-)
DaveBanchero (@mfdb)
28th June 2011, 18:38
My dad said the same thing during this race….It wasn’t that long ago that we had engines fail randomly which made things more exciting, but most importantly we had engine suppliers pushing the limits of engineering and design to get maximum power and reliability. Now they’ve been somewhat neutered.
Not to mention, we also used to have more than 4 engine suppliers. I seriously doubt any potential engine manufacturers are going to want to join F1 with the current limitations.
F1iLike
28th June 2011, 23:15
I think you hit the nail there. I really hope the rule changes will bring on some pushing the limits. Both from engines and other parts. I don’t like how spec-racing it’s been with the engine freeze.. Of course it’s nice other parts are being developed.. But still.. ALL parts should be pushed to the limit :)
Abuelo Paul (@abuello-paul)
27th June 2011, 17:54
I vote Jaime Alguersuari, well I would. Can ya put a voting tag in there somewhere please, thnx.
TommyB (@tommyb89)
27th June 2011, 19:02
Me too. It’s between him and Alonso for me but it’s rare I can give a Toro Rosso driver driver of the day so I did :P
Abuelo Paul (@abuello-paul)
28th June 2011, 9:46
How can anyone say that Vettel had a good “race”. He set off in front, drove the car forward and finished at the front. Thats not a race thats a training run. Button had a race in Canada. Alguersuari had to drive to get 10 places up on his grid position, thats RACING. Vettel is lucky he has such a good car. Thats all! Granted he has calmed down, and is now more capable of handling such a good car. But thats not racing. Start him from the vback and see if he has the ability to move through and win, thats the true test.
MarcusAurelius (@marcusaurelius)
28th June 2011, 11:23
Exactly! Vettel did nothing extraordinary to win the race. Just drive the best car of the field to its full potential.
Jaime outperformed himself and the Toro Rosso to get to 8th place and leaving better cars behind him.
DaveBanchero (@mfdb)
28th June 2011, 18:39
WHAT! you contradict yourself quite quickly there…..
David A
28th June 2011, 13:49
You’re underestimating the skill it takes to qualidy well. Alguersuari’s drive was entertaining, but he screwed up his qualifying to start 18th in the first place. Vettel deserves praise, not criticism for being a great qualifier, which is why he never has to make up 10 places.
Nixon (@nixon)
28th June 2011, 14:17
How do we know if he is good qualifier, maybe the RedBull is faster than we think. And beating Webber isnt enough.
David A
28th June 2011, 14:38
Vettel’s proven himself as a good qualifier not just this year, but since his first race for BMW in 2007, where he stuck it 7th on the grid. There’s no way 17 poles out of the last 27 is all down to the car. And you’ve not even addressed the point about screwing up in quali like Alguersuari.
DaveBanchero (@mfdb)
28th June 2011, 18:41
I agree with David A. Don’t forget the drives from Vettel in 2008 and 2009 in sub-#1 cars…
Oliver
27th June 2011, 17:56
Vettel should win technically this easily because he absolutely dominated the whole weekend, not a foot wrong.
But Alas he wont, because he made one BIG mistake…. He won 5 other races. Success always attracts flack & jealousy.
hey (@hey)
27th June 2011, 18:02
I can’t remember Vettel making a mistake this weekend? Especially not a big one.
Laranja Mecanica
27th June 2011, 19:28
Read it again… Having won almost every race this year, of course.
alex
27th June 2011, 22:25
I cant remember Vettel being “The Driver of the Weekend” in this website :)
US_Peter
28th June 2011, 6:45
Me either, even when he clearly has been. Surprised to see him ahead at the moment.
dave
27th June 2011, 18:03
the other ‘mistake’was being in comfortably the best car
VXR
27th June 2011, 18:46
That’s not a mistake. That’s called making the most of a good thing. He thoroughly deserves to be in the best car.
David-A (@david-a)
27th June 2011, 18:49
He put “mistake” in inverted commas, meaning he knows it’s not a mistake, rather people looking for any reason whatsoever not to vote for him.
VXR
27th June 2011, 19:50
My “mistake”. :) ;)
David-A (@david-a)
27th June 2011, 18:37
True. It seems everyone is being voted driver of the weekend apart from him, including the guy that hasn’t beaten him once in the same car.
DaveBanchero (@mfdb)
28th June 2011, 18:44
Yea, it’s true. I think the best driver pole, much like watching the 2011 season, is becoming more about who is in 2nd place than 1st….
Becken
27th June 2011, 21:40
I voted in Fernando because I could SEE him fighting hard against the best cars and against the flaws of his own car.
Sorry for Vettel winning form. It is not jealousy from here, but it is a little bit easy start in front in one of teh best cars in F1 history and disapear in the sunset without any ‘resistance.’
Fernando made my day in a really BORING, DULL, race day.
He entertained me and that’s was what makes him special for me yesterday.
Pink Peril (@pink-peril)
28th June 2011, 12:00
If your job is ‘easy’, then how can you be the driver of the day/weekend/year? Because someone who is putting in the effort and getting there is always going to trump someone just coasting along because they don’t need to push any harder. Hence why I voted for Alonso.
David A
28th June 2011, 13:30
But at the same time, you could say Vettel is putting in the effort to start and finish first, while his teammate drives roughly at the capabilities of the car.
sw6569 (@sw6569)
27th June 2011, 18:03
I try not to vote for the winner unless I think they have been outstanding all weekend. In this case, Vettel was. Can’t fault him, great drive. Just a shame he’s untouchable right now.
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
28th June 2011, 0:05
He certainly was, formidable again.
colinf (@colinf)
27th June 2011, 18:08
Well it has to be Fernando, obviously, as he truly out drove the capability of his car to beat at least one of the Red Balls.
George (@george)
27th June 2011, 18:34
+1
Vettel was good but he had the race covered, Alonso had to be at 100% to beat Webber.
dennis
27th June 2011, 19:31
Webber had a gearbox problem… Nice drive by Alonso… But he is one place too far up.
George (@george)
27th June 2011, 19:54
afaik the gearbox problem occured after his last stop, so he would of had to overtake anyway. The fact that Alonso was battling with the Red Bulls at all is enough to get my vote.
Fixy (@)
27th June 2011, 18:39
I voted for Alonso as he kept Webber’s pace and, at times, Vettel’s, with an inferior car. His second place was very much deserved.
dennis
27th June 2011, 19:32
Vettel drove just as fast as he needed to. No point in making the same mistake he did in Montreal by losing a 10 second gap due to a safety car and then losing out with worn tyres.
Copersucar (@copersucar)
27th June 2011, 19:59
Near the end of the race, when Seb hadn’t pitted yet but Alo and Web had I thought, there’s gonna be a SC now and Seb is gonna finish 3rd. Well, no SC, of course. And Seb pitted for the last time, I guess mostly to be safe, hys tyres seemed to be still OK.
Dutch_Alex
27th June 2011, 18:40
Three votes for Hamilton now. Why? Probably because he managed a whole weekend without penalties.
glue
27th June 2011, 19:40
at the previous poll, he got 13 votes, which was more than what Webber got and one less than Vettel..so what can you expect
n/a
28th June 2011, 4:13
four votes for massa now. Why? Probably because he bla bla la
four votes for schumacher now. Why? Probably because he bla bla bla
four votes for Karthikeyan now. Why? Probably because he bla bla bla
etc ;)
Nixon (@nixon)
28th June 2011, 14:21
Four votes for the indian guy?
TED BELL
27th June 2011, 18:43
SebVet was the best and will repeat as champion. The RedBull jugernaught will run on until rule changes and a new generation of cars come into existance. Seems unlikely that anyone will touch what has become so familiar in 2011, RedBulls leading and everyone else hoping for somekind of a mistake from the 23 year old. Enjoy what is happening as this kind of history making comes only once in a while. I also wonder if he really is that good or is it more about how good the car is??
VXR
27th June 2011, 18:48
The rules aren’t likely to change much over the next two years. We will just have to get used to it.
DaveBanchero (@mfdb)
28th June 2011, 18:47
We already did from 2000 to 2004….
sam3110 (@sam3110)
27th June 2011, 18:46
I always look to who has achieved more than we expect from the car they are in, and this weekend it was Alguersuari and Alonso, and there’s no coincidence that they are both Spaniards either!
Though they have had problems and made many mistakes, and even seemed to be off the pace before, I would also like to give a special mention to Schumacher and Massa, who seem to have up their respective games recently, and I hope we see both of them push higher up in rest of the races now
dyslexicbunny (@dyslexicbunny)
27th June 2011, 18:49
Alonso beat the driver who just doesn’t have any pace in comparison to his teammate that had gearbox problems. While it’s fantastic to see him and his car improve, eh.
Lewis didn’t crash so that’s impressive but I don’t expect him to so voting for him is silly.
Alguersuari did a great job but the fact that he can’t do anything Saturday is just disappointing.
Unfortunately (as I don’t like him at all) I ended up voting Vettel. Hopefully it’s the only time I do.
Santi
28th June 2011, 8:56
I don’t see which race did you see, but Webber had the exact same pace as Vettel until the very end when he had the gearbox problem…
Alex
28th June 2011, 15:12
We are talking about Valencia 2011? Exactly the same pace? During the warmup lap or at which time did you meassure this?
1. It doesnt make any sense if you are on P1 to rise up the gap to P2 to more than a few seconds. If something happens and the sc must come out you lost everything including your tyres. This year with these tyres you simply must managed your tyres to stay alive as long as your direct competitors are going to pit. And then, surprise, you also going to pit as well because of the safety car risk. F1 racing is different this year and Vettel managed this very well.
2. Webber got his gear box problems AFTER losing position against Alonso. Btw C. Horner mentioned that it wasnt serious problems but they decide to slow down at that time when the realized that they cannot catch Alonso. You cannot blame it on the gearbox.
Steph (@)
27th June 2011, 18:55
Vettel was faultless but so was Alonso. I plumped for Alonso because I really don’t think he should have beaten a Red Bull.
Nods to: Vettel for dominating but in a way that left me thinking that he was taking it easy and to Jaime and Sutil for good races.
dyslexicbunny (@dyslexicbunny)
27th June 2011, 21:41
Because I’m curious and I thought it a typo at first. Is using plump as a synonym for voting/choosing used specifically in a certain region of the world?
Google pulled up a couple Australian (and I presume English as well) examples and I’ve never heard it used stateside. I asked a couple other colleagues and they hadn’t either. The common response was “plumped?”.
Pakkalo
27th June 2011, 22:23
google “plump for”.
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/plump+for
dyslexicbunny
27th June 2011, 23:18
Thanks but I already had the definition. I was interested in the region of use. Based on what was in the periodical archive from the link, I presume it’s a British/Australian idiom?
Dan Thorn (@dan-thorn)
28th June 2011, 8:43
I can’t vouch for its use in Australia, but it’s a pretty common turn of phrase here in the UK.
mrgrieves (@mrgrieves)
27th June 2011, 19:07
Went for Alonso at the time, brilliant drive to live with the Red Bull’s. Put him just ahead of Alguersuari who put in a brilliant drive.
Dan Thorn (@dan-thorn)
27th June 2011, 19:21
Between the 2 Spaniards for me, both were exceptional but I went for Jaime. Great drive under pressure.
Steph (@)
27th June 2011, 21:00
I wanted to vote for Jaime but I just couldn’t because I just wasn’t impressed with his performance on Saturday.
Laranja Mecanica
27th June 2011, 19:26
I should vote for Seb Vettel, flawless but so boring… Alonso lost his chance to challenge him but it was mostly due to the team’s bad timing with the pitstops. I will go for Jaime this time.
MVEilenstein (@mveilenstein)
27th June 2011, 19:31
Perez made a good of himself this weekend.
Marco
27th June 2011, 19:34
My “invisible” vote goes for Jaime… :) It is the third time in a row that I am happy about his race perfomance… I am curious about Silverstone, when the “hards” will be back at action… If the tyre management will be so good as in Valencia, then he is back to the great shape from the end of 2010 season…
BasCB (@bascb)
27th June 2011, 19:43
I voted for Glock, he really had a try at outdoing his car again. And nice passing in the first lap. Also his lap record still stands!
But I would have given it to Vettel, if not for the fact he is getting the results that really count from his driving already. Amazing job again keeping the distance to 2.5 seconds for almost the complete race distance!
Alonso did his best Valencia race and really made it worthwhile for the fans who came to see him (Must have been just him, as they surely did not come to see a good race, did they?). Alguersuari did an amazing job as well, as did Perez.
Sutil is quickly forgotten, but it was a good job to get into Q3 and finish even a bit higher up for him.
So in the end, thanks for the effort guys, shame about this track really.
Copersucar (@copersucar)
27th June 2011, 20:07
My 2c: Say what you want but for me Valencia was a pretty good race. Without the customary Seb dominance we would have had quite a fight for the win. I gave it an 8, but could have been a nine without the momentary appearance of Ron Dennis, it totally ruined my lunch. I feel compelled to throw something hard and heavy to the screen each time that @#@#@##@@# shows up.
Neusalz (@dpod)
27th June 2011, 20:15
Should have read your post before voting. I would have put Glock as my driver of the weekend, he deserves a much better seat especially when I see the Renaults doing poorly. I put Sutil, he was very consistent and did not put a foot wrong during the race.
bpacman (@bpacman)
27th June 2011, 21:10
As its driver of the weekend, I had to vote for Vettel – pole position, fastest lap and the race win. He really is making the most of that incredible car.
In terms of driver of the day, I think Alguersuari deserves it. Second time in two races that he’s come from 18th to finish 8th. The two-stop strategy he used was available to all of the drivers (I believe he went soft then medium?) yet he used it to leap-frog all but the Red Bulls, McLarens, Ferraris and Rosberg. Two excellent performances whilst under pressure from Ricciardo and you could see with all his fist-pumping in the car at the end how much it meant to him.
Nin13 (@)
27th June 2011, 21:33
I went for Jaime Alguersuari. Pressure was high on this guy to deliver in front of home crowd after bad qualifying and having been beaten by Buemi in many races this season. But he drove a good race on 2 stopper keeping tyre wear in check.
Sebastian Vettel & Fernando Alonso also did good job but we know these guys can deliver, because they have been world champions. Plus they did not do anything spectacular, to be driver of the race. Okay Alonso beat Webber, but we all know what bad form Webber is in.
sharmin. (@spartle)
27th June 2011, 21:35
Having not won a single one of these this year, yet has won 6 out of 8 races, is it fair to say that Vettel is one of the least, if not the least, liked drivers in F1?
Copersucar (@copersucar)
27th June 2011, 21:43
Might just win this time, it’s getting close
dyslexicbunny (@dyslexicbunny)
27th June 2011, 21:58
No. I think it has to do with how dominant the equipment is. For the most part, I (and probably many other voters) am really not impressed with simply getting pole, having a good start, and winning the race. In my mind, you’re never really challenged past the start and you just need to bring the car in.
Look at the numbers on lead laps this season. While the answer is funny, the safety car is second in laps led. Next rainy race, I would like that to be an option, especially if it’s out for more than 15 laps.
To be completely honest, I don’t like Vettel at all and I swear when his name comes up among my friends. However, that has nothing to do with my voting – seriously. Since I vote at work, I pulled my votes so far this season. I think my selection is entirely fair for each weekend.
Petrov, Heidfeld, Webber, Alonso, Button (Vettel lost in a flip), Button, Schumi, and Vettel
JerseyF1 (@jerseyf1)
27th June 2011, 22:35
Isn’t that like a definition of the perfect F1 driver. What’s better than that, would you be impressed by Vettel if he qualified like Webber, got overtaken at the first corner and didn’t win the race. I always thought the concept of “racing” was universally understood!
dyslexicbunny
27th June 2011, 23:15
Well sure – if I was involved in F1, it’d be great. What’s not to like about a guy that does it with ease? But I’m a spectator and want to see drivers and teams racing for something other than second. Because so far that’s all they’ve been doing, no matter how much they say they want it.
It doesn’t mean I have to be impressed. Besides, I never claimed my opinion was the opinion to have. He’ll get my vote easily for driver of the year if he keeps it up. But since I’m looking at each weekend individually, I often find someone more impressive most weekends.
I would contend the rest of the field is racing. Seb is on a Sunday drive and the fact he makes it look so easy diminishes the idea that he’s racing too.
Jen
28th June 2011, 12:02
So dominant that the team has only once brought home a 1-2 finish? I’d say that out of his six wins this season, 3 of them were won under pressure and he didn’t put a foot wrong. That requires skill. It seems as though people are more impressed with those who put themselves in a lower position whether it’s qualifying low or making a mistake and then working their way up the field. It’s their fault they were in that position in the first place, well most of the time. The only mistake Vettel has made this season was in Canada and yet that’s apparently not good enough for him to be ‘the driver of the weekend’ after any race weekend? That suggests to me that people really do have something against him and are looking for excuses (not saying this is the case for you). I’d say it’s partly because he is thrashing his other competitors and partly because of the finger and his supposed ‘arrogance’.
Murraytastic (@sharon)
27th June 2011, 21:51
For me it was close between Alonso and Vettel as both were flawless, but I voted Alonso because Seb had the race under control and was cruising, whereas Fernando pushed very hard until the very last stages and still made no error. IMHO, of course.
Ben N
27th June 2011, 22:08
In my eyes this is not difficult at all. Although Alonso and Alguersuari both had very good home races – this has to go to Vettel. What more does he need to do? Yes – he has the best car, but he’s not even being challenged by Webber.
If a team has the best car then the least you’d expect from the driver is to win most of the races, Vettel is doing this.
It may be dull and he may draw criticism from those growing bored of his dominance but for such a young lad he’s doing a truly incredible job. There have been 8 qualifying sessions and 8 races. 13 times out of 16 Vettel has topped the time sheet. He absolutely deserves driver of the race.
Deurmat
27th June 2011, 22:13
what about D’Ambrosio, completing the race without water and without fainting after the race.
taurus (@taurus)
27th June 2011, 22:21
Karthikeyan for being the first driver to finish 24th. Incredible achievement.
Icthyes (@icthyes)
27th June 2011, 22:36
Driver of the weekend, well it has to be Vettel. Pole, win, fastest lap, done in very Prost-like fashion. Alonso meanwhile drove a good race but messed up his qualifying.
KeeleyObsessed (@keeleyobsessed)
27th June 2011, 22:51
Alguesuari, simply for proving to everyone that it wasn’t a fluke in Canada…
domichalek
27th June 2011, 23:55
For me it’s obvious that Jaime, great job :)
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
28th June 2011, 0:07
Alguersuari gets my vote. He’s had a good couple of races so i’m hopeful it’s not a lucky streak!
I do like him and like the BBC said, he is still very, very young.
infy (@infy)
28th June 2011, 1:09
I voted for Alonso. He was way ahead of where he should have been. He drove beyond the cars capabilities.
dragon
28th June 2011, 1:33
I don’t think Webber is in particularly bad form. He’s just made to look bad at the moment by his teammate. If you talk of Hamilton and Alonso extracting the most from their cars, then what do you think Seb is doing? IMO the Ferrari’s RACE pace around Valencia was right up with the Bulls, hence the battle with Webber. Unless Mark is at the top of his game like he was in 2010, Alonso is a better driver, and the result reflects that; regardless of the gearbox issue, Webber was slower on the prime than the other front runners on the old soft, and lost out accordingly in the pits.
Anyway, the original point I was trying to make is that Vettel IS outdriving the car. He’s just doing it in such a dominant and controlled fashion that it’s hard to see anything but weekend cruises. He gets the vote, with honourable mentions to Jaime, Fernando and Timo.
sumedh
28th June 2011, 5:02
Is the unthinkable happening?
Vettel is winning this poll after winning 6 races on the road!!
I have been voting for Vettel in these polls for a while. But on Sunday, Alonso was on a whole different level. He matched Webber and overtook him on-track – something we haven’t seen in Valencia.
Todfod (@todfod)
28th June 2011, 10:38
Well I guess when its down to Fernando and Vettel for driver of the weekend, most people on the this site would rather vote for Vettel.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
28th June 2011, 10:50
There’s no reason to jump to this assumption – in Turkey Vettel won the race but Alonso was voted Driver of the Weekend.
David-A (@david-a)
29th June 2011, 1:48
Not anymore. The crowd that think he’d be better screwing up in qualifying have had their say.
wasiF1 (@wasif1)
28th June 2011, 7:30
Alonso, some good drive to pass Webber & the take the place back after the last pitstop,his pass over Trulli was scary.
fordsrule (@fordsrule)
28th June 2011, 7:35
Vettel easily, never troubled during the race, lead every lap and got the fastest lap.
spankythewondermonkey (@spankythewondermonkey)
28th June 2011, 11:30
not quite. massa was ahead for 1 during the 1st stops phase.
xtophe (@xtophe)
28th June 2011, 8:44
Vettel: pole, fastest lap and the win. Never got in trouble. Alonso had a good race aswell, so did Alguersuari. I don’t consider Alguersuari the best driver of the weekend. He might’ve had an excellent drive on sunday, but he messed up qualifying.
85Q
28th June 2011, 16:36
Didnt he hardly do any laps in practice due to issues? ok he went out in q1 but his team mate was last in q2. therefore saving jamie a set of tyres or 2. which he used to great effect!
suka (@suka)
28th June 2011, 8:45
I am maybe a bit subjective thinking all the f1 excitment during the race is among the top several guys and in that respect, Webber did try hard but Alonso in Webber’s car and starting grid position would surely challenge Vettel as he has done to Webber…My final answer/vote goes to Alonso.
W-K (@w-k)
28th June 2011, 10:31
I voted for Jenson. Because his overtaking of Nico at turn 2, therefore not a drs move, was the only thing I can truly recall from a totally boring race.
Shomir
28th June 2011, 10:35
Vettel, definitely.
Did a great job staying at the front.
For all the haters, he’s not “lucky to have a good car”, HES GOOD. People just hate that finger and immediately start criticizing him…
Atticus
28th June 2011, 14:26
There’s more to that.
It’s like Schumacher and the F2002 and F2004. The best package altogether. He, Fernando, Lewis or Nico is the best driver on the grid at the moment, so he’s definitely has the cutting edge, and Newey’s (the ‘new Chapman”s) beauty, the RB7 is definitely the best car.
So while it’s true that ‘ahh he’s good because he has the fastest car’, he also adds his own newly-matured talent to make it perfect.
Abuelo Paul (@abuello-paul)
28th June 2011, 11:02
Not quite off subject…. To really see how good a driver is the grid positions should be set by the previous race finishing positions. BUT in reverse order. So drivers have to get to the front to get the points but are penalised by position for their success, thus making them work for the victory, not just breeze it cos they are quickest off the mark in the first 100m. Then a driver would be able to say he has raced to victory.
This Vettel, Red Bull combination is as boring as the old Schumi Ferrari deal used to be. The drivers parade is supposed to be BEFORE the race not during.
Jen
28th June 2011, 12:08
Saying that drivers don’t have to work for any position, other than last, is ridiculous. Every other driver either has to defend – either by creating a gap or by stopping the car behind from passing – or they have to attack.
Don’t they say that those that make it look easy are doing the best job?
bosyber (@bosyber)
28th June 2011, 12:43
Well, I went for Vettel already in Monaco, chose Alonso here. I had him winning though in my prediction, so I suppose he disappointed, but in reality, my prediction had attempted to leave Vettel out.
Alonso did a great job, managed to get himself clearly ahead of Webber even before the gearbox. I was also impressed with Alguesuari on Sunday, but on Saturday he could have done a bit better (then again, his teammate ended up on the same row, just one place ahead so maybe it’s the car). Massa and Schumacher also did pretty well (apart from the wing; and Massa’s pitstop).
baldgye (@baldgye)
28th June 2011, 12:43
Alguersuari gets my vote, great effort from him.. Vettel did nothing wrong, but I can’t vote for the guy who won, from pole in the fastest car…
Alonso have a good drive too… but then you’d pretty much expect no less from someone of his level.
Erik
28th June 2011, 13:34
The rule seems to be that the race winner can’t be Driver of the Day unless it’s not Vettel.
a4p (@a4p)
28th June 2011, 14:10
Vettel may have achieved a ‘Grand Slam’, but he did that on the best car and with full support of the team…
Let’s say that the best MAN+CAR package is Vettel on the RedBull. But the best driver is always Fernando Alonso.
Atticus
28th June 2011, 14:35
I would only declare that on a say 10% level of confidence.
It’s so hard to properly judge Vettel, Alonso, Hamilton and Rosberg. All of them could be the best, it’s hard to decide.
What’s more interesting in my opinion is the name of the next ‘great’, who follows in the footsteps of Fangio, Moss, Clark, Stewart, Lauda, Prost, Senna and Schumacher, who will have that cutting edge above the rest in hindsight. We will only know the answer to this one, when the next generation appears on the scene in 10 or so years.
Atticus
28th June 2011, 14:29
I voted for Fernando, because I think he have had to show off every little bit of his talent to get 2nd place. He has had to work harder than Vettel.
Both of them made perfect work, it’s just that Alonso’s was harder to achieve I think.
Also kudos for Jenson for that beautiful non-DRS pass on Nico who himself is one of the greatest driver on grid right now.
Quin1010 (@quin1010)
28th June 2011, 14:48
Since this poll is for the entire weekend I have to go for Vettel. Takes pole,leads most laps, sets fastest lap, wins race. On top of all this he was able to spend Friday testing possible updates for Silverstone. How could the weekend possibly gone any better?
PJA (@pja)
28th June 2011, 17:23
I was most impressed by Alguersuari’s race result considering his recent form, he still needs to work on qualifying.
OmarR-Pepper (@)
28th June 2011, 17:52
Alonso, because he made the only important overtakes of the race. What a boring race, honestly!!!!!! Probably it’s time the European Grand Prix goes to another location, I heard Paul Ricard is probably coming back, is it true?
VXR
28th June 2011, 18:11
There’s a task force been set up to get a French GP up and running. The manager of the Paul Ricard circuit has been drafted in to help make it a reality.
I’ve also heard that the Barcelona GP is to be dropped with immediate effect and Valencia will move to Barcelona’s 2012 date.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
28th June 2011, 18:33
Just replied to your similar comment here:
https://www.racefans.net/2011/06/28/2011-european-grand-prix-complete-race-weekend-review/comment-page-1/#comment-733257
VXR
28th June 2011, 18:38
The crowds were quite poor at Barcelona this year. The economic situation in Spain isn’t good. Perhaps Barcelona’s promoters will be only too happy to be bought out of their contract?
jasonpoly
28th June 2011, 18:34
Hmmm, lots of love for Alonso who arguably finished ahead of his car position, but not so much for Hamilton who did exactly the same thing. It’s really hard to separate Vettel, Alonso and Hamilton as they all appeared to extract the maximum from their cars.
VXR
28th June 2011, 19:45
Button finished about 14 seconds behind Hamilton in a car that had lost 20 seconds worth of KERS power. Button also got 3rd fastest lap behind Vettel and Alonso, again with no KERS power. Go figure!
Wayne
28th June 2011, 21:07
Got to be the safety car driver for me, didn’t put a foot out of place all weekend
Erik
28th June 2011, 21:09
Haha, and he lead half the race in Canada as well ;)
jsw11984 (@jarred-walmsley)
29th June 2011, 1:25
The reason I don’t vote for Vettel is because he never impresses me, I expect it from him, therefore unless he does something spectacular like laps everyone or has a crap quali and has to work through the field he will never get driver of the weekend from me, So for me Jaime is my driver of the weekend he drove well in the race despite having little running in the FP sessions
David-A (@david-a)
29th June 2011, 1:46
That indeed makes him better. You know, better than actually doing his job in quali.
Jean
29th June 2011, 9:09
I missed the vote , but would have for Schumacher. Even his slide into Petrov , although he took the blame , was because of the cold tyres . Other than that , he had a very good set up , and would have been ahead of Rosberg in the end , maybe even Vettel
VXR
29th June 2011, 11:09
Yes. I think it was fairly obvious that Schumacher was the best driver in the race by quite some margin (!?).
Not statistically as good as Hamilton though, who, somehow, as managed to accrue 14 votes thus far!
delta6 (@delta6)
29th June 2011, 10:20
Votted for Alonso. I think we outpassed his car’s ability and had a solid race. Vettel also had a very good race but to be honest I would like to see him prove himself in difficult conditions sometime this year.. Just to remind people that he isn’t just a decent guy with the best car…
delta6 (@delta6)
29th June 2011, 10:21
”voted” sorry. Doubleclicked t button!!! lol
Soumya
29th June 2011, 15:03
I suppose Hamilton gets driver of the weekend votes for just turning up. LOL. Went for Alonso,perhaps the only guy who drove above the level of the weekend.
3v3r10n9 (@3v3r10n9)
29th June 2011, 16:15
It was a pointless race. The honors goes to Narain Karthikeyan for finishing 24th.