Vote for your 2019 Australian Grand Prix Driver of the Weekend

58 comments on “Vote for your 2019 Australian Grand Prix Driver of the Weekend”

1. 

   davey (@djdaveyp87)
   17th March 2019, 15:39

   Bottas, for a variety of reasons. Mostly for overcoming the adversity of last season and coming back with a bang. As a Hamilton fan, I’ll be happy to see them battling each other more often this season – especially if the advantage they had here materialises elsewhere.
   1. 

      Alonso (@alonshow)
      18th March 2019, 12:51

      I understand the sympathy for Bottas, but he definitely didn’t do anything special. Lost at quali, won at the first corner. That was the whole weekend for him. The first few laps Lewis kept a safe distance, so nothing special there. Then Vettel gambled on an early pit stop (and lost the gamble) and Mercedes used Lewis to cover Vettel. After that there was nobody left to challenge Bottas. I’m happy that he won, but that doesn’t make him driver of the weekend. He just won by default.
2. 

   Adam (@rocketpanda)
   17th March 2019, 15:43

   Bottas 100%. Once he took the lead he was in a league of his own with a pace that nobody seemed to have an answer for. He really does seem to have come back from last season as a changed driver as the Bottas out there wasn’t the same one from 2018. Plus the beard’s hot.

   Impressed by Verstappen for grabbing the first podium for Honda since their return, Magnussen for being completely solid, Kvyat for holding off a Red Bull on his first race back, and Giovinazzi for being a brilliant roadblock.
3. 

   Dutchguy (@justarandomdutchguy)
   17th March 2019, 15:44

   Bottas

   Although Kvyat netted what might be a very important result for him
   All off a sudden he looks like he might actually be back in F1, and not just to fill an otherwise empty seat
4. 

   Velocityboy (@velocityboy)
   17th March 2019, 15:46

   The question is for the race weekend and not the race, so I went with Verstappen as his performance was pretty steady across the entire weekend.
   1. 

      CarWars (@maxv)
      17th March 2019, 17:31

      @velocityboy

      Exactly, these votes sometime make no sense. He was outqualified by his team mate, so driver of the day is fair. Of the weekend..
      1. 

         Ben Rowe (@thegianthogweed)
         17th March 2019, 18:30

         He was outqualified by the pretty much the best qualifier out there, and only marginally. That was still an excellent time. And Hamilton would have been half a second behind Bottas in qualifying if there had been any sort of incident later on as Bottas was far quicker to begin with which is vital. And Bottas was clearly far better in the race. So given that he was really strong in both, driver of the weekend should be fine.
      2. 

         Dent (@dentmido)
         17th March 2019, 18:57

         Not because their opinion isn’t the same with urs, then u call it nonsense
         Actually the nonsense is ur comment calling the votes nonsense
      3. 

         FA
         18th March 2019, 11:34

         So who exactly was your DOTW last year in Austin?
   2. 

      ColdFly (@)
      17th March 2019, 18:37

      Fair point @velocityboy.
      I voted for Bottas, but that doesn’t mean that he was better than Verstappen over the weekend, just that it was less expected of him (especially against Hamilton).

      Great start of season by Kvyat and strong race by Stroll (yes Stroll).
      1. 

         ColdFly (@)
         17th March 2019, 18:46

         And Magnussen
         1. 

            MacLeod (@macleod)
            17th March 2019, 23:20

            I agree with all above! Bottas, Verstappen, Magnussen and Kvyat and a strong comeback from Stroll.
5. 

   faulty (@faulty)
   17th March 2019, 15:48

   Voted Bottas. Wanted to go with The Lando.

   I expect many more giant-killing drives for the rookie. Might not be easy for Bottas to deliver a similar performance to today’s.
6. 

   Jere (@jerejj)
   17th March 2019, 16:22

   The DOTD definitely Bottas, but the DOTW, a bit more difficult to choose, but I went for VB nevertheless.
   1. 

      Balue (@balue)
      17th March 2019, 17:58

      @jerejj same
7. 

   Eric (@fletch)
   17th March 2019, 16:23

   Voted for Bottas but was very impressed with Stroll. 7 positions up and kept his composure with big pressure from behind and maintained pressure on Kimi. Well done
8. 

   isaac (@invincibleisaac)
   17th March 2019, 16:25

   Has to be Bottas hasn’t it? Bounced back very well from a difficult 2018. Looked quick in qualifying and I thought he might take pole. Nailed the start and dominated the race from there. Honourable mentions to Norris and Verstappen. Looked a difficult weekend in particular for Ricciardo and Gasly
9. 

   Stephen Crowsen (@drycrust)
   17th March 2019, 16:25

   I voted for Max because this was an outstanding result for Honda. This was their first podium since 2008.
10. 

    DAllein (@)
    17th March 2019, 16:27

    Valtteri

    Maybe not the best weekend, but definitely the best race day and a great “come back” from 2018.
11. 

    stefano (@alfa145)
    17th March 2019, 16:29

    I’m sorry, I know this is pretty close to being nonsense, but I went for Kubica. Regardless of the final result, this was such an achievement many of us -me included- could never even begin to comprehend, let alone achieve. Actually completing a race weekend still beggars my belief, it’s such an inspiring story, that the final terrible result can hardly obfuscate. On the grand scheme of things, the man who achieved most has got to be him.
    1. 

       Phylyp (@phylyp)
       17th March 2019, 16:31

       Nice one :)
    2. 

       F1oSaurus (@)
       17th March 2019, 16:41

       I was wondering why 3% voted for Kubica, seeing how he got beaten by his rookie team mate quite badly, but I guess that’s it then.
       1. 

          ColdFly (@)
          17th March 2019, 18:43

          Must be like the FLAP point.
          F1 Loving and Adoring Personality.
       2. 

          FA
          18th March 2019, 11:37

          Says it all really, if someone even had to wonder why.
12. 

    Raven
    17th March 2019, 16:33

    Wish I had a good reason to vote for Leclerc, or Kubica, but really don’t have one.
    And I’m definitely not going to vote for Bottas. The fact that he was better than his teammate doesn’t mean he was any good at all.
    I’m no fan at all of Verstappen, but I’ll vote for him today. I only watched two meaningful overtakes in all the race, and MV got the best one.
    1. 

       Ivan Donson (@ivanfbi)
       18th March 2019, 1:32

       so you dont have to be good at all to beat your teammate, who just happens to be lewis hamilton? are you sure?
       1. 

          Raven
          18th March 2019, 2:59

          In an incident-free race like this one you have to be absolute rubbish to finish beyond 2nd in a Merc
    2. 

       FA
       18th March 2019, 12:00

       And I’m definitely not going to vote for Bottas. The fact that he was better than his teammate doesn’t mean he was any good at all. In an incident-free race like this one you have to be absolute rubbish to finish beyond 2nd in a Merc – So let’s say, we have driver A and driver B driving the Merc. Driver A is the best driver in the history of F1 and driver B is the 2nd best. Obviously one had to win the race, and the other come in 2nd. But according to this VER fan, the decisively winner of this epic intra-team battle isn’t necessarily any good at all. However, qualifying 0.17s slower than your new-in-team-teammate who on top of that only has one year total experience in the first run, and only outqualifying him in your 2nd flying lap while his was compromised by an electrical and subsequently tyre issue by 0.14s, DOES warrant a vote.

       The mind-bending these folks practice SMH
       1. 

          Raven
          19th March 2019, 21:27

          It is good practice to read a post before answering it. You call me a VER fan when I stated very clearly I am not one (and I should know who I am a fan of). Admittedly VER’s drive last Sunday was not the stuff of legend, but at least he snatched a pretty good overtake which was (for me) the highlight of the weekend, so he gets my vote, not having been there much more to choose from.
          Now your logic is terrific. Ok, there is a (remote) possibility that we had the two best drivers ever doing their best drives ever, and one of them had to lose this epic battle (are you sure that’s what we watched last Sunday btw?). But it this the only possibility? well, of course not. Consider this other possibility. We have two mediocre drivers, both doing an average drive in a VERY dominant car. As they are mediocre, but not absolute rubbish, they finish first and second (as well they should, in an incident-free race which such a dominant car). One wins, the other doesn’t, but neither of them is any good, just average.
          Between both possibilities there are as many as you want in between. Now, was the winner of this intra-team battle necessarily any good? Not necessarily, and that’s my point. Doesn’t mean he couldn’t be.

          That is the problem with driving a very dominant car. You can drive like a god, and you win. You can drive like a grandma and you still win. So it’s very difficult to make a difference.
    3. 

       stefano (@alfa145)
       18th March 2019, 21:35

       Well, it’s not like Bottas didn’t put a substantial gap between him and Hamilton, crushing the entire opposition to his will…hard to see how one should not vote for Bottas (I didn’t, but for different reasons).
13. 

    Azmo (@azmo)
    17th March 2019, 16:36

    Bottas! Honorable mentions to magnussen, kvyat, norris and verstappen
14. 

    Nulla Pax (@nullapax)
    17th March 2019, 16:52

    I go Lando as it is a vote for the weekend.
    In truth I can think of a reason to vote for pretty much any of them … even Lance :)
15. 

    Sham (@sham)
    17th March 2019, 16:53

    Gasly.
    Kidding. Most overrated driver since Vettel.

    I’m going for LeClerc. Despite a mistake, he did pretty damn well under the pressure.
    1. 

       ColdFly (@)
       17th March 2019, 18:45

       You don’t seem to like Vettel :P
       1. 

          Sham (@sham)
          17th March 2019, 20:02

          what gave it away?
    2. 

       Indiana (@indiana)
       17th March 2019, 20:35

       Leclerc? The dude couldn’t follow the top 4 when he needed to…he was dead slow
    3. 

       Gio
       18th March 2019, 12:36

       Gasly.
       Kidding. Most overrated driver since Vettel. – That would be VER. Gasly is hardly rated at all.
16. 

    Luke S (@joeypropane)
    17th March 2019, 18:41

    Went for Max. Qualifying ahead of 1 Ferrari and beating both in the race is a fantastic result for a Honda-powered car.

    Leclerc, Magnussen and, dare I say it, Stroll also had good weekends.

    The others were anonymous or peaked too early Saturday.
17. 

    HUHHII (@huhhii)
    17th March 2019, 18:58

    Kimi. Can’t think of any reason why not to vote for him, so there it goes.
18. 

    Christopher Rehn (@chrischrill)
    17th March 2019, 19:29

    Bottas for me. Narrowly lost out in qualifying but still an acceptable result there. Then, utter domination in the race. There can be no other DOTW for me.

    Verstappen, Stroll, and Kvyat get honorable mentions.
19. 

    Bob (@bobespirit62)
    17th March 2019, 19:46

    Really, is it the driver’s fault if the car has wheelspin off the line or if the team makes a bad strategy call. I’m usually the first to criticize LH, but in reality, he probably drove the best of anyone all weekend. I find it hard believe the driver has anything to do with the start – it’s all done to the car and electronics, etc., isn’t it? Then, when the team made the bone-head move to put him on meds with 40+ laps to go, he had to make those tyres last until the end, while separating from Vettel and then hold off Max with much fresher tyres. And he still almost put in the fastest lap. Valteri did want any top-flight driver in any series would do when he has the better strategy and an equally fast car and that is drive steady until the end and get the victory. Of course, it’s not easy, but top F1, Indycar, WEC, Nascar, etc. drivers do it every weekend. Lewis gets my vote for driver of the weekend.
    1. 

       Keith Campbell (@keithedin)
       17th March 2019, 21:06

       I find it hard believe the driver has anything to do with the start

       @bobespirit62 I disagree – driver input is a huge factor in the drivers’ starts. They have to feed the throttle, pull the dual clutches in at the perfect rate, then time the gear changes for maximum traction. We regularly see drivers getting one or other of these stages wrong. E.g. watch Leclerc’s start – he has a lightning reaction off the line and good launch, but gets wheelspin in the 2nd phase which loses him some of his advantage to Vettel ahead.
20. 

    Indiana (@indiana)
    17th March 2019, 20:36

    I have to go with Verstappen, giving Honda their first podium since 2008

    Honorable mentions to VB, KMag and Kvyat
    1. 

       Gio
       18th March 2019, 12:34

       You always go with VER.
21. 

    Keith Campbell (@keithedin)
    17th March 2019, 20:57

    DoTW – Bottas for his dominant race, never put a wheel wrong. Best fake smile of the weekend – Ocon, when Bottas took the chequered flag.
22. 

    Tristan (@skipgamer)
    17th March 2019, 21:37

    Obviously Botha’s, did exactly what he needed to do at this crucial point of the season.
23. 

    ruliemaulana (@ruliemaulana)
    17th March 2019, 23:28

    I voted Stroll. He was faster than my man Perez all weekend. Not even Ocon can do that. Having bad luck in qualy but doing great race.
    Honorable mentions to Kvyat and Honda.
24. 

    Jay Menon (@jaymenon10)
    18th March 2019, 0:09

    I voted KMag. Bottas was a very close second, but KMag was constantly wringing the max out of the car all weekend and was under pressure from Hulk for most the race.

    Honourable mentions for Kimi and Leclerc as well.
    1. 

       Scottie (@scottie)
       18th March 2019, 7:22

       Agreed, I went for Magnussen also.

       Had Bottas had the measure of Lewis in Quali, he would have got it, but kMag had Grosjean in his pocket all the way, and headed the midfield battle. Great weekend.

       Leclerc had his off during the race and was out-qualified. Vettel ran out of pace at the end of the race. Lewis botched his start. Max had a good weekend I guess, but had less pressure and benchmark with Danny Ric gone.
       1. 

          FA
          18th March 2019, 12:32

          I think MAG did a great job too, but kind of an inconsistent reasoning: “Had Bottas had the measure of Lewis in Quali, he would have got it, but kMag had Grosjean in his pocket all the way” – Both BOT and MAG were outqualified by their teammates, and MAG with a bigger delta, 0.112s vs 0.273s.

          Also, in the race, BOT was way faster than HAM, while GRO was equal to MAG.
25. 

    JohnH (@johnrkh)
    18th March 2019, 1:33

    I voted Bottas because he came into the race with enormous pressure on him. His lack luster performance from last yr was still news. He has been placed on a 1 yr contract and Merc has brought Ocon into the team, clearly to let Bottas know that he is on notice.
    Botas just killed the entire weekend barely any mistakes, cool and in charge. Also The Hulk had a nearly flawless performance all weekend.
26. 

    NewVerstappenFan (@jureo)
    18th March 2019, 6:57

    Bottas, easy. I see also I am not alone in my understanding of driver performance. Comming up against a great like Lewis, chewing him up in the first race, despite starting second and dominating… It is the most anyone could have done in those circumstances.

    Maybe he could have gotten pole aswell, but Statistically it is not probable anyone will get many poles against Lewis.
27. 

    Big Joe
    18th March 2019, 22:13

    Verstappen
28. 

    jenc (@jens)
    19th March 2019, 9:47

    I would vote for Charlie Whiting, but couldn’t…

    Bottas had a sublime drive. Magnussen too, in best-of-rest class.

    Gasly get the vote for worst driver of the day.
    Had Max started in the back, he would have been in top 6 by last 20. Gasly made no real progress.
    “Yes, yes, but Melbourne it is difficult to overtake”… Wrong that is. Max went from P20 to P9 in frigging MONACO last year!!!

    Gasly needs to get his act together, or we will start discussing who will replace him in summer break.
    1. 

       FA
       19th March 2019, 12:19

       You can’t possibly know that. In fact, VER couldn’t overtake ALO at this very circuit all race long last year, making him the only driver of the top-3 teams who couldn’t overtake an F1B car. He was lucky still because HAAS botched both their drivers’ pit stops, else he would’ve been 8th instead of 6th. And all this came from starting from 4th, one of his best quali’s.

       Monaco was bc:
       1) RICs pace was super slow bc of his issues, keeping the field closely packed
       2) ALO DNF
       3) Not being penalised when overtaking SAI off track
       4) SIR and STR sustaining damage at the start
       5) All the guys in front of him not even defending, bc nobody wanted to use up too much of their tyres fighting him
29. 

    ferrox glideh (@ferrox-glideh)
    19th March 2019, 21:34

    Bottas was perfect, but I voted for Kubica.
    Robert Kubica was forced to deal with crushing disappointments before the race even began, and with a half mirrorless hobbled he car cleanly sorted blue flag conditions for the Entire Race. I have not heard of any bad incidents that he caused. He is a working class hero to me.
30. 

    ketu (@ketu)
    22nd March 2019, 13:59

    Max over whole weekend.
    Solid ( and extremely happy! ) for Bottas but he did got out qualified….
31. 

    PJA (@pja)
    27th March 2019, 19:41

    The standout driver in qualifying was Norris, on his F1 debut getting the McLaren in the top ten, the race didn’t turn out as good and he only finished in twelfth.

    Bottas impressed in the race, but I think some have gone a little overboard in their praise, just like some were too quick to write Bottas off after 2018. The view seemed to be that as Bottas had beaten Hamilton on merit in one race then Bottas is now much improved and will be a realistic bet for the title.

    Bottas was undoubtedly quicker than Hamilton in the race, how much of that was due to damage to Hamilton’s car we don’t know because had Hamilton had been quickest all weekend up until the race, but Bottas has shown previously there are occasions where he can outperform Hamilton so I don’t think what happened in Australia is anything new.

    Congratulations to Bottas on a deserved win, especially after all his troubles in 2018, but after the first race it is too early to be revising all the predictions we had for 2019.

    Verstappen also had a good weekend, getting Honda’s first podium since their return to F1, I can’t help but think we don’t know how to rate his performance simply because of how bad a weekend his teammate had.

    I was tempted to vote no opinion for the first time as I couldn’t decide but I ended up voting for Norris.

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