Lewis Hamilton took his second victory of the season at the Hungarian Grand Prix, after successfully fending off the two Lotus cars.
The race was rated 5.975 out of ten, leaving it second from bottom in this year’s ratings, while it was the worst Hungarian race since F1 Fanatic records began.
The nature of the track made for a strategic race with few overtakes. It left some fans wishing Friday’s rain had made a return.
Most F1 Fanatic readers agreed it was a less than thrilling race:
That was an awfully boring race. The combination of a restrictive track, cars unable to follow well in turbulent air and the teams getting a hold of the Pirelli tyres meant that the race was no more than a strategy simulation for most of the teams.
The only things that felt remotely exciting were Schumacher’s bad start, Raikkonen and Grosjean fighting at the pit exit, and Maldonado’s incident with Di Resta.
PJ
The race had potential had the Pirellis degraded more – just imagine the epic Hamilton-Raikkonen battle we might have had if the rear tyres had gone off.
But with most battles it quickly became clear that you can’t follow close enough through the last few corners to overtake down the main straight.
KaIIe
Quite a procession. I thought the mixed strategies at the end would’ve mixed things up but there still wasn’t much overtaking or many battles.
Driftin
However others appreciated the tension that a strategic race provides:
It was a very tense and tactical, if uneventful race. I liked how the various strategies ended up playing out, and how the different drivers/teams coped with the race as it unfolded.
Hallard
The result did mean the race for the championship got a little more interesting:
I was pretty happy with the result as it was good for the championship with Hamilton, Raikkonen, Grosjean and Vettel closing the gap but apart from that there wasn’t too much to take away from it.
Smifaye
The race did produce one of the more memorable team radio clips of the year so far with Sebastian Vettel urging his team to “do something” as he remained stuck behind Jenson Button:
Listening to the teams’ radios was more interesting than watching the driving. This race needed rain.
Funkyf1
The debate over the new podium set-up continued. After F1 champions Jackie Stewart and Niki Lauda conducted the interviews in the last two races, there was criticism of the decision to let Spanish opera singer Placido Domingo wield the microphone in Hungary:
The race gets an instant one [out of ten] for sending Placido Domingo to do the post race interviews!
Of course it?óÔé¼Ôäós a joke, but what was the idea, really? He?óÔé¼Ôäós not Hungarian, nor a F1 guy. Not sure he?óÔé¼Ôäós even a petrolhead. […]
They could?óÔé¼Ôäóve got Allan McNish up there. Or David Coulthard. Or Damon Hill. Or Martin Brundle. Or Johnny Herbert. Even Zsolt Baumgartner!
Fer no. 65
However Hairs preferred the new podium set-up:
Doing it on the podium with someone of interest makes sense for the fans at the track, and doesn’t rob the TV viewer of anything other than a cut from camera as the drivers trek pointlessly off to a poky back room somewhere to be asked asinine questions.
Hairs
Previous rate the race results
2012 Rate the Race results
| Race | Rating |
| 2012 European Grand Prix | 8.784 |
| 2012 Chinese Grand Prix | 8.648 |
| 2012 Malaysian Grand Prix | 8.542 |
| 2012 Spanish Grand Prix | 8.274 |
| 2012 Canadian Grand Prix | 8.197 |
| 2012 Australian Grand Prix | 7.662 |
| 2012 German Grand Prix | 7.055 |
| 2012 British Grand Prix | 7.048 |
| 2012 Bahrain Grand Prix | 6.904 |
| 2012 Hungarian Grand Prix | 5.975 |
| 2012 Monaco Grand Prix | 5.436 |
Hungarian Grand Prix Rate the Race results
| Race | Rating |
| 2011 Hungarian Grand Prix | 8.344 |
| 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix | 6.808 |
| 2010 Hungarian Grand Prix | 6.654 |
| 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix | 6.202 |
| 2012 Hungarian Grand Prix | 5.975 |
What did you think of the Hungarian Grand Prix? Did it deserve its low rating? Have your say in the comments.
2012 Hungarian Grand Prix
Image ?é?® McLaren/Hoch Zwei
Dimitris 1395 (@)
7th August 2012, 15:12
It’s not the low rating that surprised me. It is the fact that in a season with so many formidable race, Hungarian Grand Prix, which is usually a race with huge interest and drama, has been so low. If I were to point out some races before this season began, Hungary would be definitely in the top 3…
Ral (@)
7th August 2012, 15:56
The Hungarian GP ratings in particular, would seem to indicate the general upward trend of excitement and attractiveness of the races against which the Hungarian GP contrasts more and more starkly.
Similar to Monaco this year.
jochenrindt78 (@jochenrindt78)
7th August 2012, 16:03
I’m still reeling from Valencia being a good race…I really hoped for rain during hungary but alas it never came…
BasCB (@bascb)
7th August 2012, 16:46
I think its telling that apart from the few things @pjtierney mentions the FOM race edit showed us only the pitstops and the gridgirls as being of interest. Sums up the race nicely then.
xeroxpt (@)
7th August 2012, 18:43
HAha.
Max Jacobson (@vettel1)
7th August 2012, 20:22
I think possibly since we’ve been rather spoiled this season Hungary seemed mediocre at best. In comparison to some of the previous seasons it wouldn’t be all that bad, there was just a lack of overtaking.
AndrewTanner (@andrewtanner)
7th August 2012, 21:20
I guess the past few years the teams haven’t been that close so you could ‘patch over the cracks’ of the circuit by not expecting them to run so tightly. On this occasion they did. However, I’m a believer that the race is often how you find it on the day and another day, it could have been the best of the season.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
7th August 2012, 21:27
I wonder if this year’s race sowed the seeds of a more interesting encounter next year. The teams are going to be even more minded to have as few pit stops as possible and will be willing to run longer strategies and let the tyres degrade even further, particularly after what happened to Jenson Button.
I look forward to reviewing this comment in 12 months’ time and thinking “well, I got that wrong…”
BasCB (@bascb)
8th August 2012, 8:01
Looking forward to seeing them try that one Keith!
dragoll (@dragoll)
7th August 2012, 22:14
From a spectator point of view, I was struggling to stay awake during the Hungarian GP. I’ve been watching F1 long enough to know that Hungary is a yawnfest at best, so armed with my red bull I did my part and soldiered through.
Other people in the forum are comparing it with Monaco and I’d just like to remind those people that Monaco provides glitz, glamour and heritage. Monaco also throws up the odd surprise on track as the gap from leading teams to back teams get significantly reduced. Many F1 drivers who have won at Monaco have gone on to become world champions, Hungry doesn’t provide any of those services to the F1 calendar.
BasCB (@bascb)
8th August 2012, 8:03
Ehm, Alonso, Button did have their first wins here, didn’t they @dragoll?
dragoll (@dragoll)
8th August 2012, 9:46
@bascb I don’t think I explained my point well enough. I was suggesting that drivers who win Monaco are considered of a higher ability than those that struggle to win on the streets of the principality.
Many drivers who have won Hungary have gone on to win championships, but I wouldn’t mark the circuit as one that creates folk lore, the stuff that legends are made of. Its a sense I have, if you get that from Hungary, then that’s good for you. I just feel as though the circuit is dull, and lifeless.
My perspective is purely watching the european races from 1991 onwards on the couch at 10pm or later at night when its telecast here in Australia.
BasCB (@bascb)
8th August 2012, 9:54
Oh, I know that Hungary has thrown up horrible races over the years, but since 2003 its also thrown up a few surprises and good racing too, like that win by Alonso, and by Button. And the race where Heikki won his first/only was good (not for him winning though, that was probably luck), as was last years race.
Imre (@f1mre)
8th August 2012, 8:40
Heritage: The Hungaroring is the third longest serving track in the calendar(after Monaco and Monza) 27 GPs in succession. And there was the first GP behind the Iron Curtain.
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
8th August 2012, 1:44
LOL, my comment about Placido Domingo made it here. Odd.
I still mantain it was a very very poor choice. I like the new podium design and the interviews, they should just chose the “star” that’s going to ask the questions wisely. Or then, just use the guy who was already doing the questions on the press conference.
BasCB (@bascb)
8th August 2012, 8:04
Completely agree with that @fer-no65
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
8th August 2012, 8:31
@fer-no65 If nothing else it’s downright patronising to turn it into a celebrity thing. They seem to believe people who’ve shelled out hundreds of pounds to watch their stars race will only be interested in what they have to say if they’re asked questions by someone famous.