Vote for your 2016 Austrian Grand Prix Driver of the Weekend

2016 Austrian Grand Prix

3rd July 2016, 17:146th July 2016, 9:40 | Written by Keith Collantine

Which F1 driver was the best performer during the Austrian Grand Prix weekend?

Review how each driver got on below and vote for who impressed you the most during the last race weekend.

Driver performance summary

Driver	Started	Gap to team mate (Q)	Laps leading team mate	Pitted	Finished	Gap to team mate (R)
Lewis Hamilton	1st	-0.543s	22/71	2	1st	-16.71s
Nico Rosberg	6th	+0.543s	49/71	2	4th	+16.71s
Sebastian Vettel	9th	-0.12s	4/26	0
Kimi Raikkonen	4th	+0.12s	22/26	1	3rd
Felipe Massa	10th	+1.537s	8/63	2	20th	Not on same lap
Valtteri Bottas	7th	-1.537s	55/63	2	9th	Not on same lap
Daniel Ricciardo	5th	-1.173s	1/71	2	5th	+25.262s
Daniil Kvyat	22nd		0/1	0
Nico Hulkenberg	2nd	-0.272s	21/64	3	19th	Not on same lap
Sergio Perez	16th	+0.272s	43/64	2	17th	Not on same lap
Kevin Magnussen	17th	-0.024s	46/70	2	14th	+4.867s
Jolyon Palmer	19th	+0.024s	24/70	2	12th	-4.867s
Max Verstappen	8th	+1.173s	70/71	1	2nd	-25.262s
Carlos Sainz Jnr	15th		1/1	1	8th
Marcus Ericsson	18th	-0.028s	17/70	2	15th	+6.867s
Felipe Nasr	21st	+0.028s	53/70	1	13th	-6.867s
Fernando Alonso	14th	+0.582s	0/64	2	18th	Not on same lap
Jenson Button	3rd	-0.582s	64/64	2	6th	Not on same lap
Pascal Wehrlein	12th	-0.461s	40/70	2	10th	-25.791s
Rio Haryanto	20th	+0.461s	30/70	2	16th	+25.791s
Romain Grosjean	13th	+0.272s	70/70	1	7th	Not on same lap
Esteban Gutierrez	11th	-0.272s	0/70	2	11th	Not on same lap

Vote for your driver of the weekend

Which driver do you think did the best job throughout the race weekend?

Who got the most out of their car in qualifying and the race? Who put their team mate in the shade?

Cast your vote below and explain why you chose the driver you picked in the comments.

Who was the best driver of the 2016 Austrian Grand Prix weekend?

Esteban Gutierrez (0%)
Romain Grosjean (1%)
Rio Haryanto (0%)
Pascal Wehrlein (43%)
Jenson Button (23%)
Fernando Alonso (0%)
Felipe Nasr (1%)
Marcus Ericsson (0%)
Carlos Sainz Jnr (0%)
Daniil Kvyat (0%)
Jolyon Palmer (0%)
Kevin Magnussen (0%)
Sergio Perez (1%)
Nico Hulkenberg (0%)
Max Verstappen (15%)
Daniel Ricciardo (0%)
Valtteri Bottas (0%)
Felipe Massa (0%)
Kimi Raikkonen (2%)
Sebastian Vettel (0%)
Nico Rosberg (2%)
Lewis Hamilton (12%)

Total Voters: 600

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2016 Austrian Grand Prix

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Keith Collantine

Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...
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111 comments on “Vote for your 2016 Austrian Grand Prix Driver of the Weekend”

Friederike (@rike)
3rd July 2016, 17:17
wuhu jenson, but close is wehrlein!
1. Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
  4th July 2016, 3:32
  I’ll doff my hat to JB. Again in 2016 McLaren seem to perform better on a power track, as in Russia. Anyway nice qualifying, not that quick on the race but he fought well. Wehrlein made that mistake that was leniently ignored, Nasr also went better than expected.
Retired (@jeff1s)
3rd July 2016, 17:18
Pascal Wehrlein, who else?
He qualified 12th and finish the race 10th in a dog of a car. First points for Manor since Jules Bianchi. Respect !
1. hahostolze (@hahostolze)
  3rd July 2016, 17:34
  Not to be pedantic but it’s clearly not a dog of a car. He was 12th and 10th on a track that isn’t an elimination course like Monaco. Obviously Wehrlein was very good but it’s not like he overcompensated for the car. The car really isn’t that bad.
  1. pSynrg (@psynrg)
    3rd July 2016, 23:02
    @hahostolze Check out his team mate, who has shown decent comparative performance otherwise this season.
  2. TribalTalker (@tribaltalker)
    5th July 2016, 10:47
    @hahostolze – It’s a “dog of a car” when the tyres don’t warm up (which is most of the time) but this race saw Wehrlein get good temperatures. Really nice to see and a very positive interview with DC after the race.
2. JCost (@jcost)
  4th July 2016, 7:46
  Yes. Pascal
Bayu Aji Widyadi R (@bayuajiwr)
3rd July 2016, 17:18
if i could vote for 2 drivers, I would vote for jenson and pascal
but pascal got my vote at last
flawless all weekend, qualified superbly, drove brilliant race to the point
1. GobiLux
  4th July 2016, 14:33
  Would have been flawless if he parked his car on the right grid spot ;)
  1. JohnNik (@johnnik)
    5th July 2016, 6:40
    He did.
  2. Bayu Aji Widyadi R (@bayuajiwr)
    5th July 2016, 6:58
    nah, almost forgot that ‘meh’ ;),
    well at least he realized it quick enough to avoid the penalty ;)
    1. Mark
      5th July 2016, 10:27
      Never heard of reverse parking? You must be female.
F199Player
3rd July 2016, 17:20
Wehrlein for me, could have made Q3 on merit in a car that would have had no business being there if he went on the Ultra Softs in Q2 instead of Super Softs. Drove a fantastic race and certainly deserved that point he earned.
Gabriel Rocha (@gabrielrocha)
3rd July 2016, 17:21
Classified 12th with a Manor while his teammate was out in Q1, finished 10th and brought home points for only the second time in the team history. It reminded me of Jules when a saw a Manor in the points again. Werhlein is the man!
1. Strontium (@strontium)
  4th July 2016, 0:16
  +1
UnitedKingdomRacing (@unitedkingdomracing)
3rd July 2016, 17:22
Button because he showed so much more than his two time world champion team mate and only reference in ability of the car. Wehrlein surely also outperformed Haryanto by some margin but the later is basically not much more than a pay driver. Therefore close call with vote for Jenson.
1. Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
  4th July 2016, 3:33
  @unitedkingdomracing Yes but you haven’t watched any other of their 30 races together. Button has been crushed.
  1. Stu
    4th July 2016, 13:32
    How on earth has he been crushed? Alonso has edged qualifying but races have been neck and neck. Button outscored him last year and looked superior at the tail end of the season.
    1. Loen (@loen)
      4th July 2016, 21:17
      Neither of them, Button or Alonso, have set the world on fire in a car that has been
      light years behind Mercedes and Ferrari…and if they could not get that beast to
      to run, nobody could. The things they have both achieved on occasion have
      been nothing short of amazing ! But the fortune count was with Button at the
      start of Sunday’s race and he did not throw that golden opportunity away. That’s why,
      in many, many, ways, when the chips are down, Button is your main man.
      Simple really !
Ed Marques (@edmarques)
3rd July 2016, 17:22
Pascal, brilliant stuff from him (apart that thing on the start hahaha)
Button, Verstappen and Hamilton were great also.
1. Gary
  4th July 2016, 17:14
  Yes, move of the day crashing into Rosberg on the last lap.
  1. anonymouscoward (@anonymouscoward)
    4th July 2016, 20:44
    What would you have done Gary having been ahead of your team mate with no road left to use?
  2. Mark
    5th July 2016, 10:30
    Didnt you notice the corner either?
Uzair Syed (@ultimateuzair)
3rd July 2016, 17:23
Wehrlein and Button were the two contenders for flawless weekends, but in the end I give it to Wehrlein for destroying Haryanto in the same car and for a Jules-esque drive. R.I.P Jules. We still miss you.
Jorge Lardone (@jorge-lardone)
3rd July 2016, 17:23
Pascal Wehrlein, of course. Also good weekend for Button, Hamilton, Nasr.
hahostolze (@hahostolze)
3rd July 2016, 17:27
Wehrlein will win it but it has to be Verstappen, eighth to second, showing once again that points are only won on Sunday and that being faster on Saturday means nothing. Four out of five races now he’s beaten the Honey Badger on race pace and race everything.
Kudos too to Button. Great race.
ILuvSoundtracks (@)
3rd July 2016, 17:28
Verstappen.
1. verstappen (@verstappen)
  3rd July 2016, 21:29
  Yep.
  Qualy was red Bull’s fault. But staying out so long on those tyres was magnificent.
  1. krxx
    5th July 2016, 20:11
    Lol, exactly my point.
hahostolze (@hahostolze)
3rd July 2016, 17:29
Incidentally, speaking of Verstappen, Peter Windsor once noted how Carlos Sainz has this ability to find a limit, which he can’t maintain fully, which either works or leads to mistakes, but which makes his quali (relative to Verstappen) so good, but Verstappen has this ability to drive very close to a limit constantly, without really ever finding the ability to go over it (ie, go faster than himself, like would be handy in qualifying)
I think Ricciardo has the same as Sainz, because his quali’s are always better but he never seems able to convert it to race pace.
1. Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
  4th July 2016, 3:40
  @hahostolze Ricciardo just had a bad start, the rest was compounded effects. Both Daniel and Max have a very similar driving style. I did vote Verstappen even if I believe maybe other guys deserved some honours in 2016.
  1. hahostolze (@hahostolze)
    4th July 2016, 6:35
    Ricciardo was still ahead of Verstappen after lap one. So the bad start did not have an effect on the inter team battle…
2. Mark
  5th July 2016, 10:33
  He goes over the limit quite often actually…..4 crashes in five races.
Matn
3rd July 2016, 17:30
This would have been a third for Verstappen, but Wehrlein crushed his team mate 0.529 seconds more than Verstappen crushed Ricciardo.
Well earneed DOTD for Wehrlein
1. Jim Manna
  3rd July 2016, 17:33
  But personally I rate Ricciardo a hell of a lot higher dan Haryanto…
Ronald (@mosquito)
3rd July 2016, 17:30
Easy pick for Verstappen for me. Beat his teammate fair and square and reached the podium on his own merit.
Traverse (@hellotraverse)
3rd July 2016, 17:35
We should have two votes.
Driver of the weekend: Jenson Button
Dummy of the weekend: Nico “Crash Kid” Rosberg.
1. Mashiat (@mashiat)
  4th July 2016, 18:01
  @hellotraverse 2 crashes and he’s a crash kid? He’s not nearly as accident prone as Hamilton was
Friederike (@rike)
3rd July 2016, 17:42
driver of the weekend and driver of the race would be great
Martijn (@)
3rd July 2016, 17:55
I guess the majority is already considering Max no longer upcoming but already arrived. Can see no other reason why he otherwise wouldn’t get the DOTW
1. Friederike (@rike)
  3rd July 2016, 17:59
  He has very contrary to jenson and wehrlein a great car, they did exceptionally good in their crappy cars!
2. BasCB (@bascb)
  3rd July 2016, 18:57
  He was solidly outqualified by his teammate here. Button did a far better job in qualifying and given the car they had as good a job in the race @mayrton. But Wehrlein did better than anyone could have expected both on Saturday and he lived up to it to get points on Sunday so for me he gets it.
ShabD
3rd July 2016, 18:00
What a drive from Lewis, worthy of a champion I must say! Despite everything going against him Lewis still came out on top with a well deserved win. Nico should learn to take defeat well. Being this desperate and T-boning a teammate… A race ban is very much out for his antics. Too bad this race had to be in little-germany of all places and he will surely get away with it…
Very disappointed with the austrian “fans”. They of all people should know better than acting like that and throwing racist slurs. They are giving us a bad name and no wonder no potential new fans want to associate with a sport that projects such a racist image of itself. I say, suck it up racists! I would vote for Lewis out of spite of them if he wouldn’t fully deserve it on merit already.
1. Markp
  3rd July 2016, 22:43
  Why were they racist. They booed him as many support Rosberg. When Vettel used to be booed was that racist?
  The booing had no indication of racism jus disappointed fans of the other driver.
2. pSynrg (@psynrg)
  3rd July 2016, 23:07
  I have to agree with Markp here. There wasn’t a racist element to the booing, or if there was then it may have been anti-British, or the incident with Rosberg being misinterpreted.
  1. pcxmac (@xsavior)
    4th July 2016, 4:41
    the claim was racist slurs. He never said it had to do with booing. Maybe he was there and heard some. Wouldn’t be terribly surprised.
    1. Gary
      4th July 2016, 17:19
      Why would you “(not be) terribly surprised” that fans in Austria used racist slurs? Is that a preconceived notion about Austrians and Germans? Is that racist?
3. Pete (@repete86)
  4th July 2016, 13:18
  Was I the only one who interpreted that as being booing Nico’s move rather than booing Lewis? There wasn’t any booing until the incident was brought up. It didn’t remind me of Seb being booed for winning the race.
  1. Mark
    5th July 2016, 10:34
    Your the only one mate.
Osvaldas31 (@osvaldas31)
3rd July 2016, 18:05
Jenson Button for me. Showed his skills and experience at their best.
First of all, he got as much from qualifying as anyone on the grid could with his Mclaren. Again, king of changeable conditions.
In the race he was defending very well from faster cars, pitted when it was necessary and made some great moves on others. Sixth was really the maximum could eke out with that Mclaren.
jCage
3rd July 2016, 18:07
Today Rosberg actually made a very strong case for himself until the last lap.
All the scything through traffic will be forgotten after his desperation move and baffling post-race comments.
1. glynh (@glynh)
  3rd July 2016, 19:45
  Same, although I haven’t seen any comments from Rosberg, he had a brilliant race right up to that final move which, unless he had issues, was too aggressive.
  I went with Wehrlein and Button a close second.
2. krxx
  5th July 2016, 20:33
  Today Rosberg actually made a very strong case for himself until the last lap. – nuff said.
Xusen (@xusen)
3rd July 2016, 18:26
I’ll give it to Pascal, excellent Qualy result and the first point for Manor.
Got lost in all the Ros-Ham controversy.
FlyKing
3rd July 2016, 18:59
Failure of the week surely HULK the overrated F1 driver and most icredible talent still up and coming. He doesnt deserve anything better than fraudster Mallya’s team.
bull mello (@bullmello)
3rd July 2016, 19:04
Wehrlein for putting his car where it had no business in qualy and into the points. A very Minardi-like performance by Manor this weekend.
Honorable mention to Max and Button.
A special thank you to Rosberg & Hamilton for making this race memorable. 🙂
PorscheF1 (@xtwl)
3rd July 2016, 19:08
I always try to find someone else besides the usual suspects (Verstappen, Button) so had to choose between Palmer and Sainz. Both moved forward a lot with terrible engines, in the end Sainz scored points so voted for him.
1. Arnoud van Houwelingen
  4th July 2016, 13:57
  Why not Wehrlein then .. just curious??
Philip (@philipgb)
3rd July 2016, 19:31
I voted Hamilton. Lots of drivers had very impressive results but the coverage focused so much on Mercedes that Hamiltons was the one we got to see what he did to make it happen so it’s the drive I have the lasting memory of and I’m not looking for an excuse to vote against him.
Understeer (@abdelilah)
3rd July 2016, 19:34
Pascal was on my top list but I ended up voting for Lewis, the way he managed the GP and kept his cool after losing and standing his ground against Rosberg showed once more that he is a champion material indeed.
Brilliant drive from Pascal, getting that wheelchair into the points is a massive achievement knowing that his teammate ened nowhere.
GeeMac (@geemac)
3rd July 2016, 19:39
Pascal Wehrlien. Utterly amazing, scored points and he was the star of qualifying. Manor thoroughly deserved that.
Wais (@itswais77)
3rd July 2016, 20:09
I was stuck between Button, Werlhein and Verstappen but Werlhein was the one that impressed me more, doing a Bianchi, scoring points in the worst car of the grid while his teammate was in last and only fighting the Saubers but from what I heard he had an electrical problem… oh well
Broke84 (@broke84)
3rd July 2016, 20:36
I found this very difficult having followed c4 highlights whilst dealing with a crying infant. I was so ready to finally give my vote to rosberg. He almost deserved it but that last lap was down to him hands down. My vote in the end was between wehrlein and button. As a brit I wanted Button to have it, I couldnt, great race from him but it has to be wehrlein
Jerejj
3rd July 2016, 20:37
Wehrlein
Morty Vicar (@mortyvicar)
3rd July 2016, 21:17
Wehrlein. Easy peasy. Seems most others (so far) thought the same, naturally. Honourable mentions go to Max and the Jolly One.
MacLeod (@macleod)
3rd July 2016, 21:35
Pacal, Jenson or Max hard choosing ok for this time Jenson with Max and Pascal all honours!
Danang Seta (@dngsk)
3rd July 2016, 21:35
Button did very good.. Pascal was good.. But Indonesian TV commentator kept talking about Haryanto during the race despite many things happened in the front.
AntoineDeParis (@antoine-de-paris)
3rd July 2016, 22:18
Voted my man Jenson, he was racing all the weekend, while Fernando took a bus tour once again.
Shout out to Verstappen, showed some skills today.
Neel Jani (@neelv27)
3rd July 2016, 22:36
Have to go with Sainz! The guy qualified bad but lost out in SC and was 17th before climbing his way up to 8th. His super drives coupled with Red Bull’s desperation to sign him so early is a clear indication of his skill and he proved it again today.
Other mentions – Pascal and Max.
ColdFly F1 (@)
3rd July 2016, 22:47
Solid 70 laps by Rosberg, strong race by Verstappen, great weekend by Button.
But my vote goes to Wehrlein. Very impressive how he attacked Bottas (who I thought would be on the podium) towards the end.
1. Ben
  4th July 2016, 20:47
  @coldfly Why is Rosberg even getting a mention ? So Rosberg had a “solid 70 laps” which include a mistake where he went off track. But Hamilton ” made too many small mistakes” which I think was running a little wide in one corner. I’d say running off the track is worse wouldn’t you ?
  1. ColdFly F1 (@)
    4th July 2016, 22:39
    Dear Ben,
    I call fighting back from 15th to 1st ‘solid’!
    As you’ve read my other comment you know why I rate HAM’s weekend less than perfect. I expect more from a Merc driver.
    I have no preference between HAM or ROS, and purely look at their performance for the weekend and rate it as I see fit.
    I stand by my previous comment and rating.
    1. Ben
      4th July 2016, 23:49
      It was hardly 15th tho @coldfly. Yes after his pit stop he had dropped down the order but he over took most cars when they pitted and the ones he did pass on track were much slower and on older tyres. Had he started 15th I’d be more impressed but he actually had the better strategy so being 15th at one point in the race was a help to him.
Markp
3rd July 2016, 22:47
People giving it to Hamilton. Last race Rosberg did not get it after pole, fastest lap, leading every lap on the way to a win. The reasoning was Hamilton had technical issues. Hamilton started on pole today but for much of the race was beaten by his team mate but got lucky with his teammate having technical issues. Guaranteed if this situation was the other way round Rosberg would not get a single vote. Wish he just drove straight on and squashed Hamilton into the wall really really hard.
1. RP (@slotopen)
  4th July 2016, 1:25
  Put the red pen away Markup. No reason to wish hurt on somebody because your boy lost.
  DOTW was gone for Roseberg the moment his teamate took half a second off him in qualifying
  1. pcxmac (@xsavior)
    4th July 2016, 4:43
    and sealed when he threw away the win after Merc gifted it to him, after the first and second pit stop.
2. Martin
  4th July 2016, 10:02
  Hahahaha this is hilarious! Last DOTW you were saying if Hamilton had got pole, fastest lap and win he would be DOTW and this pole clearly proves otherwise. Now you’re saying if Rosberg was in Hamilton’s situation he wouldn’t have got a single vote. Well guess what you are wrong again! Just look at the last DOTW Rosberg got 20% of the votes, more than Hamilton is getting now.
  “but for much of the race was beaten by his team mate”
  Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha ok you clearly weren’t watching the same race as everyone else.
  As I said last time (and have been proven 100% right) there is no “1 rule for Hamilton and 1 rule for everyone else”!
  “Wish he just drove straight on and squashed Hamilton into the wall really really hard”
  You seriously want 2 professional drivers to be seriously injured or killed because you’re butt hurt over your fave not winning an internet popularity contest? Grow up will you!
  1. Markp
    4th July 2016, 17:19
    I actually prefer Hamilton to Rosberg. If Hamilton attempted what Rosberg tried he would of made it count.
    There is a strong element of this vote being a popularity contest and no doubt Hamilton has far more fans than Rosberg.
    1. Martin
      4th July 2016, 18:29
      “There is a strong element of this vote being a popularity contest”
      No doubt, given that at most only 2 drivers share the same machinery and that there is so much information we don’t have access to it is basically impossible for anyone voting to come up with an fully accurate picture of who was the best DOTW. And even if we *could* personal bias will always play a big part in any human endeavour.
      “no doubt Hamilton has far more fans than Rosberg.”
      I would imagine so too.
      Still don’t get what your point is though! You can just look at the 2 races in question (Baku and Austria). Hamilton currently has ~50 votes for Austria and Rosberg got ~80 for Baku, even though less people overall voted on Baku’s DOTW. What point are you really trying to make here? Because it can’t be that people are favouring Hamilton, the numbers prove otherwise!
      1. Markp
        4th July 2016, 20:39
        Maybe my perception. In the end the only thing that matters is who wins the title.
        Personal opinions are fascinating though as it seems totally logical Rosberg would get driver of the weekend in Baku as he did the maximum in every area of the weekend but I am sure he was happy with the points rather than the DOTW award.
        What’s your opinion on the collision? Clearly a Rosberg issue however would it of been considered a Hamilton issue if Rosberg turned hard left in Canada at the start rather than taking evasive action. I cannot help but think if the roles were reversed on Sunday Rosberg would have driven far out into the run off to avoid Hamilton?
      2. Martin
        5th July 2016, 14:47
        My personal opinion is that Rosberg would never have made the corner the way he drove without the collision with Hamilton in the first place. My conclusion is therefore that Rosberg didn’t actually care about making the corner, all he cared about is making sure Hamilton didn’t. That takes the situation beyond hard racing into dangerous driving or just plain idiocy.
        It stinks of desperation from Rosberg and is the second time this season he has made a questionable move against his faster teammate while driving a hampered car (Spain: power loss due to being in the wrong engine mode) and if I were Mercedes I would be mightly annoyed about it.
        As for Canada I’m honestly not sure. It would have been different to Austria as Rosberg would have been driving/crashing into Hamilton. In Austria Hamilton’s car wasn’t pointing at Rosberg’s it was pointing at clear track. I imagine it would have been seen as a racing incident but for sure I think Hamilton was entitled to take the racing line as he did (just as Rosberg was entitled to in ’14 at Canada) and I think Mercedes would have been unhappy with Rosberg a la spa ’14.
        The interesting thing about Canada and Austin (the other race people are bringing up) is that Rosberg actually crowds Hamilton towards the inside on corner entry both times. This is always going to naturally force Hamilton wider on exit regardless of what his approach is.
F1fan
3rd July 2016, 22:49
Hamilton!!!!
1. F1fan
  3rd July 2016, 22:52
  He had to fight for it and Mercedes did not give him anything. Not to mention the dirty trick from Rosberg so yes Hamilton showed why he is a world class driver.
  1. ColdFly F1 (@)
    4th July 2016, 10:32
    Maybe change your name to Hamfan.
    “Mercedes did not give him anything” – like giving him the fastest car (by far) isn’t anything!
    Too many small mistakes by Hamilton to earn a DOTW (e.g. when defending against Ricciardo after his first stop).
    HAM/Merc should have done some ‘Hammertime’ in his first stint, and made sure he would stay ahead of Rosberg/Verstappen (i.e. stop earlier), than solely focusing on Vettel.
    1. Sonics (@sonicslv)
      4th July 2016, 12:26
      @coldfly When did Hamilton had to defend against Verstappen (Ricciardo is further behind btw) after his first stop? It looks closed but he never threatened Hamilton and their gap is like 0.6s and just goes bigger each lap. Also I think it’s impossible to expect Hammertime on Ultra Softs especially when its over 20 lap old when the optimistic prediction is they can only lasts 10 laps.
      1. ColdFly F1 (@)
        4th July 2016, 12:51
        @sonicslv,
        “(Hamilton) compounded it by running wide at turn two on his out-lap while trying to keep Daniel Ricciardo behind” (link; It was his 2nd stop though – my bad).
        And also it was his 2nd stop when he was behind VES; not his first (my bad squared).
        Agree that ‘Hammertime’ on 23lap (3+20) old US does not seem realistic.
        But his team knew from lap 7 that ROS was gaining 1-1.5sec/lap (and later VES/RIC were doing the same). Thus moving to a 2-stopper with some ‘Hammertime’ around lap 10-15 could have worked wonders.
        Even without ‘Hammertime’ (but with the slow pit-stop), had he stopped on lap 18 then he would have rejoined in 3rd in clean air, and in front of Rosberg!
      2. Sonics (@sonicslv)
        4th July 2016, 13:30
        @coldfly Yeah I was too fixed on you saying 1st stop that I forgot it all happened in 2nd stop instead!
        I don’t think asking for Hammertime in Ultra Soft is realistic, especially after how bad they worn during practice, but I agree Mercedes should bring Hamilton before Rosberg is within strike zone (when he still have about 25s gap) to avoid unnecessary drama. Lap 18 sounds perfect.
Phil Norman (@phil-f1-21)
3rd July 2016, 23:07
I went for Jenson in the end. I think he got the maximum he could out of the McLaren and really made it look competitve. A highly commended to Wehrlein as well.
I am quite an admirer of Rosberg and I think he had a really good drive today up until the last lap. I think he has done his reputation a lot of harm with that move on Hamilton. It really makes him look like an unfair loser rather in the mould of Schumacher in his younger days.
1. TribalTalker (@tribaltalker)
  5th July 2016, 11:12
  @phil-f1-21 – I’m not sure that Rosberg was being a bad loser, I think he just ran out of answers. He doesn’t seem like a mean guy, just a bit clumsy in a tight situation.
ia
4th July 2016, 0:15
I would say Wehrlein: he did the most with the worst car.
montreal95 (@montreal95)
4th July 2016, 0:50
A tough call between Button and Wehrlein. Chose the latter in the end but both were amazing!
Hamilton and Verstappen were very good also. Would’ve added Rosberg here if not for the last lap stupidity
Good mark for Sainz, Grosjean, Kimi and Nasr
Mia
4th July 2016, 4:17
It looks like it’s almost a desperation by F1 Fanatic readers here not to vote Lewis whatever the results he brings in but especially when he wins. This pattern seems to be appearing not just this race. It’s good not to always go for the race winner, but it’s even better to be just be fair and plain fair. Max once again benefited. Button, not enough a winner for the whole weekend because this is supposed for the whole weekend. The race was voted very highly because of the high racing craft provided by LH’s skills and determination. So no doubt LH.
1. pcxmac (@xsavior)
  4th July 2016, 4:50
  don’t take it personally. I thought Lewis’ win despite his own team and his overtake on the last lap was unmatched, especially his qualifying efforts in Q2 and Q3, in mixed conditions, given how far he was off in the dry. It’s not just this race either, a lot of people seem to want to ignore how his own team is screwing him over and over again and ‘rate’ ROS. The power of deception. Reinforcing social norms and expectations. I am just glad I get to see a guy like Lewis buck the trend and show people something different, because the world needs variety and diversity, competition and honesty.
2. Friederike (@rike)
  4th July 2016, 4:57
  funny, similiar respond of a nico Fan above, (no nico or Lewis Fan here) its Not about Who wins, and in the mercedes There Would be a Lot of drivers able to Do what lewis and nico Do. but drivers Who make exceptional performance in very bad cars like mclaren or manor, or drivers who drive fantasticly despite very young age (or both ) deserve it more in comparison. and Lewis definiatly can’t complain that There is Not enough People liking him, as rosberg, but they are both controvertial, lewis for his driving and nico for his incapability to except he does mistakes too and can’t always blame others
3. Martin
  4th July 2016, 10:09
  “It looks like it’s almost a desperation by F1 Fanatic readers here not to vote Lewis whatever the results he brings in but especially when he wins.”
  I don’t see it that way. Hamilton was impressive this weekend, especially in qualy, but so were Button and Wehrlein. Its difficult to really judge across a whole weekend who was the absolutely best when you have 3 drivers with basically 3 completely different cars (Merc/McL/Manor). Yes Hamilton got pole and the race win but it was basically impossible for Button and Wehrlein to do that in their cars. It would seem harsh to deny them DOTW for that.
  Personally I am a big Hamilton fan but if I could vote I would have voted for Wehrlein this weekend anyway.
4. Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
  8th July 2016, 13:35
  It looks like it’s almost a desperation by F1 Fanatic readers here not to vote Lewis whatever the results he brings in but especially when he wins.
  Strange thing to say about the driver who’s won this poll more times than anyone else.
Matn
4th July 2016, 11:40
I am pretty amazed Hamilton gathered that many votes, his race wasn’t that great.
If it wasn’t for that last lap confrontation Rosberg would have done a much better job starting from P6.
Hamilton started from P1 and should have had an easy victory, but he really had to fight his own team mate fiercely
1. Sonics (@sonicslv)
  4th July 2016, 12:30
  This is driver of the week. His qualifying effort is great, beaten Rosberg who has the edge on practice convincingly in dry and wet condition. His 1st stint alone on Ultra Soft is mega. And the final stint Hammertime too. The reason he has to fight Rosberg is because Mercedes strategy that give Rosberg position on track. I choose Button myself, but I can see why Hamilton also a good candidate for DotW.
2. Craig Wilde (@wildfire15)
  5th July 2016, 15:56
  Hamilton deserves some kudos for his efforts, though I gave it to Wehrlein as I was far more impressed by him. He was behind in practice but still managed to nab pole from Rosberg and took the fight to his team mate on what’s probably Rosberg’s best track on less grippy tires. What wasn’t perfect was his opening stint approach, which seemed good on paper but ended up putting him behind Rosberg after he’d cleared the traffic. Mercedes don’t tend to be the best at strategizing and between them and Hamilton they got it wrong.
Sonics (@sonicslv)
4th July 2016, 12:12
Button. P3 on merit, P6 on merit. No car crashing ahead of him except Vettel. No free pit-stop on Safety Car either.
Another consideration is Wehrlein who did perform almost as great as Button in qualy and race but he have lot of car retired ahead of him, and Rosberg which did great before his move destroyed it all.
Frieda (@friedatwo)
4th July 2016, 12:48
It was Wehrlein for me. I suspect that he might just know this track better than the ones we’ve had before whereas Haryanto had known more with their various experiences.
Greg Kingston (@gregkingston)
4th July 2016, 14:25
Button for me. Timed his qualifying run to perfection to maximise his chance of a drying track, nailed the race start and then held off quicker cars for longer than expected before overtaking quicker cars to finish an outperforming 6th position.
NewVerstappenFan (@jureo)
4th July 2016, 16:06
Pascal, for the first time he has shown some world class talent. Mostly he was underwhelming, but this race he really stood out.
Pinak Ghosh (@pinakghosh)
4th July 2016, 16:12
I have voted for Max Verstappen. The kid made up six places on raceday and kept his cool in the final stages with fading tyres to secure second place. Wehrlien and Button also did good jobs on Saturday to put their cars high up the grid.
Bforth (@bforth)
4th July 2016, 21:50
Button, Wehrlien, and Hamilton were all outstanding through the whole weekend. Good race from Verstappen. Even so, it wasn’t a very hard choice. Button hasn’t been so beloved at McLaren as he once was ever since Dennis came back. To perform so well when threats of being sacked have been circulating so long, he is emphatically my pick for the weekend.
Arnoud van Houwelingen
4th July 2016, 22:23
Wehrlein should thank Vettel. He gained 20 seconds due to the SC and that made 10th place possible. But still great achievement for Manor and Wehrlein :)
1. Markp
  4th July 2016, 22:28
  Thank Pirelli.
Nick Wyatt (@nickwyatt)
4th July 2016, 22:37
As this is ‘Driver of the Weekend’ and not ‘Team’ or ‘Pit Crew’ of the weekend, I had to think carefully and tried to discount the weather as well.
Hulkenberg qualified extremely well because of the weather, and so did Button. Hulkenberg in the race went backwards, so DOTW is not him then.
Wehrlein also benefited from the weather but advanced convincingly in the race, so possibly him.
Button also benefited from the weather and his skill at judging the precisely most beneficial point to start his lap and then also showed mature judgement and skill in the race to deliver a result that the MacHonda really didn’t deserve.
Hamilton triumphed. Just triumphed. But was this a win in the pre-eminent car in competition with a (to be brutally honest) second class team mate. If the pit crew had not bogged-up his pit stop, Hamilton would have been two seconds in front. So maybe not him, either.
So. Button or Wehrlein. The old generation or the new. Trying to discount experience and ‘seen all that before’, I choose Wehrlein.
This season we have seen the emergence of Verstappen as a major force. So with an improvement in the Manor car (or a move to top team) we may well perceive Wehrlein as a major force and the future of F1.
SauberS1 (@saubers1)
4th July 2016, 23:27
Verstappen again.
Robert (@)
5th July 2016, 17:41
Nico Rosberg. He was unlucky with the failure in practice leading to a grid penalty and unlucky with the crash at the end (which wasn’t his fault). He drove a near perfect race and deserved to win.
PJA (@pja)
5th July 2016, 19:13
My driver of the weekend was Wehrlein.
I have to admit that I have been a bit disappointed by him so far this season, I don’t follow any feeder series but reading about the two Manor drivers journey to F1 at the start of the season I thought Wehrlein would easily have the beating of Haryanto, but so far that hasn’t really been the case.
That changed this weekend when he showed what he is capable of, getting the Manor into Q2 on merit and qualifying twelfth and then managing to score his first points in F1 with a tenth place finish.
Second would be Button, his first time getting through to Q3 for quite a while and then the changeable conditions were ideally suited for him to put in a good performance in Q3.
He showed it wasn’t a one off by managing to finish the race in sixth, which is more impressive than it sounds considering the recent form of the McLaren Honda.