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Lee McKenzie's End of Season Review 2009 (Part 1)
06 November 2009After a stunning and very different season of Formula One, BBC pit lane reporter Lee McKenzie sat down to write her own review of the year, from Australia to Abu Dhabi, exclusively for GPUpdate.net.
If Formula One worked on the Chinese calendar then 2009 would be the Year of the Underdog. Others might argue that with the news stories and drama we have had, this year has also featured the Snake, the Rat, the Tiger and the Monkey - you can choose which F1 character fits the description best!
One thing is certain though, 2009 provided a story which sounds more fantasy than fiction and restored the heart back into the sport: privately owned Brawn GP winning against the odds and conquering the corporate giants.
By the final test in Barcelona in March, there were hints that Formula One could throw up some very different results to the ones we saw last year. But would McLaren really be that slow or were they just sand-bagging and were Brawn really going to have the resources to make it through a full season?
It sums up this season that as I have been writing this there were many things which had just gone to the back of mind, 'dramas' which were quickly superseded by the next one!
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| Brawn, Toyota and Williams were to first to unlock the secrets of double diffusers |
Like the double-decker diffuser - a phrase which entered the vocabulary of the F1 viewers this year. I even had my non-motorsport-friendly Mother discussing why it would benefit some teams! But that was the interesting thing - with F1 back on the BBC it was streaming into the living rooms of a whole new audience. People were watching and when Jenson Button stormed to his first victory of the year - the public were hooked.
There was also Britain's Golden Boy Lewis Hamilton who had been drawn into a whole big, unnecessary scandal over "misleading" the stewards. The catalyst was tiny, the repercussions massive. Ultimately it led to the departure of one of F1's longest serving men, Dave Ryan. Shortly after McLaren Boss Ron Dennis stepped aside to concentrate on McLaren's road car operations.
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| Hamilton reached a career-low at Sepang |
Malaysia was a tense affair. The interviews with Lewis were short, sharp and uncomfortable for everyone including the world champion. He apologised for his part in the whole mess, Martin Whitmarsh stepped up to the fold and by the time we made it to Bahrain, things were brighter and a new drama looming.
Button won an unpredictable race in Malaysia which saw a biblical flood half way through the event - a red flag, an aborted race and half points awarded.
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| Vettel kick-starts the Red Bull challenge in China |
2 races down, plenty of drama already. Then came China and the charging Red Bulls. They were supreme and gave the team not only their first victory but a 1-2. Sebastian Vettel led the charge with Mark Webber in 2nd. The most impressive thing to remember about China is not Vettel winning the race, but how he took pole position. A driveshaft problem meant that the German was limited to just one run in each qualifying session and yet he got it right - every single time. That pole secured his first win and shaped the rest of the season.
Back to back races - just time for a day off, a quick splash in the pool and it was back to the paddock this time in a baking hot Bahrain. Although Jenson won again, Vettel finished 2nd - the championship race was on as F1 headed to Europe.
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| Button triumphed in six of the first seven Grands Prix |
Spain saw Jenson claiming victory against the odds after being past by Barrichello at turn 1 after the start. Both were on a three 3 stops strategy but after being stuck behind Rubens, and after coming out behind Rosberg in the 1st pit stop, Button was switched to a 2 stopper. Jenson blitzed round, Rubens didn't. Jenson won, Rubens missed out on a golden opportunity.
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| Brawn again: Button and Barrichello finish 1-2 at Monaco |
It was time to lose the stress and get to the grace of Monaco. The amazing Brawn train continued to pull away. Rubens was back and stole the best supporting actor role, finishing behind his team mate and consolidating Brawn's lead in the Constructors Championship. The highlight for me was Jenson overshooting parc ferme at the end of the race and having to run back up the pit straight to find the podium and the Royals with the trophy!
Would the teams turn out in Turkey? There had been rumours of a strike. There were threats of a FOTA breakaway, a championship away from "F1" that would have all the current teams apart from Williams and Force India. It was all resolved - somehow, somewhere in the playground. Another "crisis" came and went. Oh and if anyone is unsure, Button won again!
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| A second win of the season for Vettel at Silverstone |
Silverstone was dominated by politics - the FOTA row was still not over at this stage. But the only thing that the fans cared about was that this was the "last" Silverstone GP. The atmosphere was amazing, a truly British affair, apart from on the track! Hamilton qualified 18th - the McLaren still slower than my road car at this stage of the season! Jenson took an uncharacteristic 6th but it soon came to light the Brawn was a very un-British car preferring the higher temperatures! Red Bull got a cracking 1-2 in the race with Vettel taking the glory. The party was huge, Christian Horner had to get a landscape gardener in to repair the damage to his lawn and the rest of the season was shaping up to be a thriller!
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| Webber's team radio told the story in Germany |
For those who moan about the temperatures in the UK, Germany was more like a WRC event than F1. Mud, floods and cold temperatures again had the Brits and the Brawns shivering. It was Aussie Mark Webber who took pole and his first ever F1 victory. About bloody time, mate! There was no-one who would deny one of the nicest guys in the paddock that win.
One person who was pretty angry was Rubens Barrichello who felt the team lost him the race. I got my famous Rubens "blah-blah-blah" interview where he tore apart the team, the tactics and any one standing too close! He apologised to the team about 2 days later.
The F1 carousel started to twirl too - Sebastien Bourdais was binned by Toro Rosso - he was replaced by the annoyingly difficult to pronounce and harder to type Jaime Alguersuari!
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| A big scare: Massa's season-ending crash at the Hungaroring |
Hungary gave us all the bolt back to reality that motor sport really is a dangerous sport. Qualifying was coming along nicely until Felipe Massa had a sinister looking crash. As replays rolled, and I was interviewing Rubens, it came to light that something had broken on the Brawn car. A spring flew off and hit the following Massa on the helmet above the eye. He was flown to hospital and put into an induced coma. He didn't race again all season, the fact he is here and able to race again is all that matters.
From the sober atmosphere came a muted yet highly deserved celebration. Lewis Hamilton was back. He steered his constantly improving, yet far from decent McLaren to its first victory of the season - a feat that few drivers could have achieved with the tools he had been given.
(Lee McKenzie's End of Season Review 2009 - Part 2)
Lee McKenzie works as pit lane reporter for BBC F1
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