The 2007 Drivers Review

Kimi Raikkonen - Ferrari

World Champion
110 points
6 wins, 6 podiums, 3 pole positions, 6 fastest laps

The surprise eventual world drivers' championship winner bookended the season with victories in Australia, China and Brazil. However, after a convincing win in his debut race for Ferrari, Raikkonen looked anything but a potential champion as he lost momentum, finishing no higher than third for the next six Grands Prix.

His season turned around in July, when back-to-back victories over successive weekends in France and Great Britain relaunched his championship charge.

After his usual miserable luck at Nurburgring (one of two mechanical retirements, the other being in Spain), Raikkonen came good down the championship stretch, running up seven successive podium finishes (including three wins) to keep himself within sight of championship leader Lewis Hamilton.

Although he would have preferred a championship title won from the front, rather than relying on the McLarens to hand it to him over the final two races, Raikkonen's win is deserved reward for his determination to never give up the chase.

Lewis Hamilton - McLaren

2nd
109 points
4 wins, 8 podiums, 6 pole positions, 2 fastest laps

A dream F1 rookie start of nine consecutive podium finishes gave way to a nightmare end, as Hamilton committed driver errors in squandering two opportunities to wrap up the title as its youngest-ever winner. Still, if Hamilton had been offered eventual second place during the preseason, he'd probably have taken it gladly.

Even with the allegations of team favouritism from McLaren's star signing Fernando Alonso, Hamilton exceeded all expectations by matching the reigning champion and often beating him.

The heartbreak of championship failure at the final hurdle is an important part of the F1 learning curve, and will make the title all the sweeter for Hamilton if and when he does eventually triumph.

For now, just knowing that he led more laps and more Grands Prix than any other driver during 2007 will be enough.

Fernando Alonso - McLaren

3rd
109 points
4 wins, 8 podiums, 2 pole positions, 3 fastest laps

After ending 2006 on a high with a second championship title, it looked like Alonso had compounded his good fortune by moving to McLaren just as they developed the magic blend of speed and reliability.

Nine months later, Alonso's stock has plummeted. Ironically, his form in the car during 2007 was solid, reliable, occasionally inspired - for example, his brilliant wins at Nurburgring and Monza.

However, his demands for preferential treatment and his pointed jibes at his employers sullied what had been an almost flawless image built during his Renault tenure.

It remains to be seen whether the Spaniard has a future with McLaren. If not, and with Ferrari closing the door firmly by re-signing Felipe Massa, Alonso may have to put his dream of a third title on hold.

Felipe Massa - Ferrari

4th
94 points
3 wins, 7 podiums, 6 pole positions, 6 fastest laps

Few expected Massa to keep pace with star Ferrari signing Kimi Raikkonen over the course of a full season. To make matters worse, the Brazilian had to play catch-up from the start, as gearbox problems in Australia followed by a driving error in Malaysia left him as the only championship contender without a podium finish in the first two Grands Prix.

But Massa responded brilliantly, taking commanding wins in the next two races - before going off the boil. It was another eight races before he won again in Turkey, but he was unable to sustain the charge.

It will irk Massa that he had to surrender a likely victory at the season finale in front of his Brazilian home crowd. However, there was also much to celebrate. During 2007, he emerged as the most explosive qualifier among the front-runners.

On the other hand, a driver at this level can ill-afford amateurish mistakes like ignoring the pitlane red light in Canada. However, Massa has time on his side. With the ink now dry on his contract extension with Ferrari, he can look forward to developing his already impressive skills further in 2008.

Nick Heidfeld - BMW Sauber

5th
61 points
2 podiums

If Nick Heidfeld was genuinely unsettled by the pace of rookie teammate Robert Kubica in 2006, he was quick to set matters right this season. The eight-year veteran outqualified Kubica 11-5 and outscored him by 22 points, earning BMW's only two podium finishes in the process.

Heidfeld's consistency underlined his worth to BMW, in their quest to run with traditional rivals Mercedes at the head of the pack. The team isn't there yet, but after years of running with lightweights like Prost, Sauber and Jordan, Heidfeld's season haul of 61 points must have seemed like a treasure trove.

Robert Kubica - BMW Sauber

6th
39 points
16 appearances

It was a strange year for BMW - not fast enough to compete with McLaren or Ferrari, usually too fast for the rest. In such circumstances, there will be unusual focus on the intra-team rivalry.

Although he couldn't match team leader Nick Heidfeld in either qualifying or the final championship points table, Robert Kubica will take heart from the fact that, in races where both BMWs finished, he was only shaded 5-4 by the highly-rated veteran. Although the young Pole could also be thankful that he missed only one GP after suffering the worst accident of the F1 season in Canada.

Heikki Kovalainen - Renault

7th
30 points
1 podium

The former GP2 and World Series by Nissan star's entry into F1 brought great pre-season excitement. A talented and super-fast young Finn joining the champion team was sure to produce fireworks. Alas, for the first five races of his debut season, Kovalainen looked out of his depth in F1.

The North American leg of the season turned the Finn's fortunes around, via a fourth and fifth place respectively. After those confidence-boosting results, Kovalainen developed apace as the season progressed.

He thoroughly deserved his maiden podium finish in Japan, holding off a charging Kimi Raikkonen over the final laps. By the end of the season, he'd overhauled teammate and traditional rookie destroyer Giancarlo Fisichella, and ranks as the most improved driver over the course of 2007.

Giancarlo Fisichella - Renault

8th
21 points

If Giancarlo Fisichella had hoped to carry on from where ex-Renault teammate Fernando Alonso had left off in 2006, he was sorely disappointed. Even if the Renault had been able to compete with the front-runners, Fisichella looked a spent force.

He was doubtless hampered by some heavy and ultra-conservative fuel strategies, but he was not the team leader that Renault would have expected. The Italian was solid again at Monaco, taking his highest position (fourth) for the year. However, it was not enough to merit continued tenure as Renault's lead driver and main championship hope.

Nico Rosberg - Williams

9th
20 points

If there was ever a mismatch in the 2007 driver line-ups, it was the battle between fresh-faced sophomore Nico Rosberg and greybeard Alexander Wurz at Williams. In 13 qualifying sessions, Rosberg went through to the next round after Wurz had been eliminated. Only once did the reverse apply.

Building on the experience of a difficult but occasionally rewarding rookie season alongside Mark Webber in 2006, Rosberg stepped easily and confidently into the role of Williams team leader. He was never fighting for more than the minor points placings, but nevertheless did enough to draw attention and lay down his credentials as a future star.

David Coulthard - Red Bull

10th
14 points

Having worked previously with designer Adrian Newey at both Williams and McLaren, Coulthard had every reason to be optimistic about Newey's arrival at Red Bull. Although it's been years since Coulthard harboured genuine championship ambitions, he was justified in believing that the occasional podium finish was within reach.

Unfortunately, while the car did show flashes of competitiveness during the season, development progress was slow and mechanical problems frequent.

Coulthard was predictably dominated in qualifying (his weakest area) by teammate Mark Webber, and his chances were further hampered by three race-ending collisions. However, by season's end, he had eked out an unlikely points win over the perennially unlucky Webber.

Alexander Wurz - Williams

11th
13 points
16 appearances, 1 podium

Alexander Wurz's last year in F1 was a disappointing campaign. Having served as a tester rather than a racer over the past six seasons, it was no surprise that Wurz showed ring rust and couldn't trade hot laps with young gun Nico Rosberg.

Wurz shared his disappointing 2007 form with two other veterans who had also entered F1 as precocious and promising talents in the late 1990s - Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella and Toyota's Ralf Schumacher. Their waning stars reflect the changing of the guard.

However, despite not scoring as regularly as Rosberg, Wurz was responsible for Williams' best finish and only podium of the year - third place in Canada. It was a fitting parting shot from the Austrian, proving that sometimes the benefits of experience make up for the raw speed and aggression of youth.

Mark Webber - Red Bull

12th
10 points
1 podium

Webber must still be scratching his head at how he managed nine GP starts from the first four rows of the grid, yet still finished behind a teammate who only achieved the same feat once during 2007.

As ever with the Australian, it was a mixture of near-misses and rotten luck. Six mechanical failures and three ninth-place finishes contributed to Webber only recording three points-scoring finishes all season. Japan was a particularly bitter turning point, when Webber was shunted out of a promising second position by Toro Rosso's Sebastian Vettel as they followed the safety car.

The one bright aspect of Webber's season was cementing his reputation in the wet. His highest finish of the year (third) was in the awful conditions at Nurburgring, and he had driven superbly again in Japan before disaster struck.

Jarno Trulli - Toyota

13th
8 points

The Italian master qualifier again over-achieved regularly on Saturday, before dropping off the pace predictably on Sunday. Eight times, Trulli finished in a lower position than he'd started, despite cars ahead of him suffering mishaps and retirements.

At a time when Toyota are increasingly desperate to deliver results, the team slipped another rung down the F1 ladder, with Trulli netting just eight points to his previous season tallies of 15 (2006) and 43 (2005). Trulli did finally pip Ralf Schumacher in 2007 - something he hadn't achieved in their previous two seasons together at Toyota. However, beating Ralf is no longer as commendable an achievement as it once was.

Sebastian Vettel - BMW & Toro Rosso

14th
6 points
8 appearances

The 20-year old German rookie experienced a topsy-turvy introduction to F1. In just eight races, he did what no other driver in the field could manage in 17 - to finish at least one lap in every position through the field, from first right down to 22nd.

His first appearance, deputising for BMW's injured Robert Kubica at Indianapolis, was a solid but low-key affair, earning Vettel a single championship point on debut. The sparks only started flying when he stepped in for Scott Speed at Toro Rosso later in the year.

Devastated after blowing a potential podium finish by crashing into Mark Webber in Japan, Vettel rebounded immediately in China. In changeable conditions, he drove through the field from 17th on the grid to eventual fourth place. With that single performance, Vettel earned the team more points than in their entire 33-race history prior to China.

Jenson Button - Honda

15th
6 points

If Toyota spent 2007 in despair at their poor form, at least they had the consolation that things weren't any better for rival Japanese giants Honda.

For 2007, Jenson Button had hoped to sustain his stellar ending to 2006, when he'd recorded his long overdue maiden win in Hungary and outscored everybody over the final six races of the calendar. Instead, in a reversal of the 2006 form book, Button found himself languishing behind teammate Rubens Barrichello in both qualifying and race results.

Button summoned the resolve to again became stronger as the season wore on, with a fifth place in China as a belated and meagre consolation prize. With the exception of a truly dreadful season at Benetton in 2001, it was Button's least rewarding year in the sport.

Ralf Schumacher - Toyota

16th
5 points

The younger Schumacher was even more enigmatic than usual in 2007, his often nonchalant and cheery disposition off the track standing in stark contrast to the misery he was clearly suffering on it. Particularly considering his star salary, something had to give.

Despite a brief mid-year resurgence that resulted in three consecutive top ten qualifying performances and a season-best sixth place finish in Hungary, it was never enough and Schumacher announced his split with Toyota in early October.

If he fails to secure a drive for next year, Schumacher's 2007 season will mark a downbeat ending to what had once been a promising career.

Takuma Sato - Super Aguri

17th
5 points

It was another typically erratic year from the mercurial Sato. He will cherish the memories of the Canadian GP, where he not only passed and led eventual World Champion Kimi Raikkonen for 16 laps, but also caught and passed the McLaren of reigning champion Fernando Alonso three laps from the finish.

Sadly, he was unable to repeat the performance, and a single point for eighth place in Spain was his only other reward.

Vitantonio Liuzzi - Toro Rosso

18th
5 points

Although Liuzzi was ultimately overshadowed by new Toro Rosso signing Sebastian Vettel, the rivalry wasn't one-sided. Liuzzi shaded the qualifying duel 4-3 and twice finished ahead of the young German at the chequered flag.

However, and critically for a team in the bottom third of the field, his best couldn't match Vettel's best. The Italian's three points did represent a 200 percent improvement on his 2006 total.

But, after Liuzzi's two full seasons with the team, and with Vettel already challenging for podiums a half-dozen races into his career, it was no surprise when Toro Rosso announced that Champ Car champion Sebastien Bourdais would replace Liuzzi in 2008.

Adrian Sutil - Spyker

19th
1 point

When is a single point worth as much as a GP victory? Answer - when you drive for Spyker. Adrian Sutil must have felt a world apart from Lewis Hamilton as the former F3 teammates tackled their rookie F1 seasons from opposite ends of the 22-car grid.

Still, if Hamilton's rookie record string of podium finishes was the vastly more impressive statistic, Sutil's single point earned in Japan was also valuable in securing his F1 future. Apart from Markus Winkelhock's freakish one-off in the rain at Nurburgring, Sutil had the measure of his Spyker colleagues over the course of the season, and fully deserves another opportunity in 2008.

Like Fernando Alonso, though, Sutil will hope that his contract with the field's perennial backmarkers is a temporary stepping stone to better things.

Rubens Barrichello - Honda

20th
No points

As the second most experienced driver in F1 history (just a few races shy of Ricardo Patrese's record of 256 starts), Rubens Barrichello has seen it all since his debut for Jordan back in 1993.

However, even the Brazilian's vast experience could not have prepared him for the shock of failing to score a single point, a first in a 15 year career that includes nine wins and 61 podium finishes. The 2007 Honda really was that uncompetitive.

Barrichello did at least give Jenson Button some stiff intra-team competition early on, and also retained his sense of humour in the face of adversity. When urged via radio to speed up as Button was "two seconds a lap faster", Barrichello's wry response - "Don't make me laugh" - wins Driver Quip of the Year.

Scott Speed - Toro Rosso

21st
No points
10 appearances

Like Vitantonio Liuzzi, Scott Speed suffered worsening relations with the Toro Rosso team after eighteen months marked by a singular lack of results.

After another ten fruitless attempts in 2007, things came to a head at the European GP, where Speed was involved in an altercation with team boss Franz Tost. Unsurprisingly, he was released before the next GP in Hungary.

Although many of the American racer's fans were angered by the Tost incident and the manner of his dismissal, it soon became clear that Speed offered lesser prospects to the team than his replacement Sebastian Vettel.

Kazuki Nakajima - Williams

22nd
No points
One appearance

Almost twenty years after his father Satoru Nakajima had entertained fans with his legendary exploits in F1, the arrival of son Kazuki was bound to cause a mixture of nostalgia and anticipation.

In his first and only appearance for Williams, Nakajima grabbed attention for the most unfortunate reason, ploughing into his pit crew during a routine stop.

It is impossible to rate the younger Nakajima based on this single appearance. Suffice it to say, he has recorded some decent results in F3 and GP2, and will hopefully get another chance to prove himself in F1.

Anthony Davidson - Super Aguri

23rd
No points

After four years of BAR and Honda testing since his brief debut for Minardi in 2002, Anthony Davidson finally got a full season of F1 racing under his belt.

He made a low-key start before gradually getting the measure of the much more experienced Takuma Sato - at least in qualifying. Although he outqualified Sato for seven straight GP starting at Indianapolis, it took Davidson until Turkey (almost at the end of August) to finally finish a GP ahead of his teammate.

However, that wait could have been shortened considerably if Davidson hadn't hit a groundhog while running third behind the safety car in Canada. He can be satisfied with his progress during 2007. Even in a team that is set up around the needs of Sato, Davidson could surprise in 2008.

Sakon Yamamoto - Spyker

24th
No points
7 appearances

Once again, the 25-year-old Japanese driver was required to stand in for the final seven Grands Prix of the season. Last year, he replaced Franck Montagny at Super Aguri. In 2007, he took over Christijan Albers' seat at Spyker, after the single race stint by Markus Winkelhock.

Spyker made no secret of their financial motive in appointing Yamamoto, and his results did little to suggest otherwise. Routinely outpaced by Adrian Sutil, Yamamoto is unlikely to command a permanent F1 seat on driving merit.

Christijan Albers - Spyker

25th
No points
9 appearances

The dismissal of Christijan Albers after the British GP at Silverstone temporarily ended the Dutchman's tenuous presence in F1 over the past few seasons.

After 46 starts in which his only points finish came at the six-car US GP of 2005, Albers succumbed to the reality that drivers in the smaller teams must either bring prodigious talent or significant money. When one of Albers' sponsors failed to meet payment obligations, Spyker turned to Sakon Yamamoto instead.

Markus Winkelhock - Spyker

26th
No points
1 appearance

He arrived, led for six laps in monsoonal conditions at Nurburgring, then vanished just as suddenly. For a team intent on getting coverage for their sponsors rather than any realistic hopes of competing regularly for points, Spyker could not have wished for more from one-race debutant Markus Winkelhock.

As with Kazuki Nakajima, it is both impossible and unfair to rate Winkelhock based on that single appearance. However, if he does return to F1, he will have a tough record to try and maintain. As the statistics stand, he has led for six laps, almost 50 percent of his total career laps. Not even Michael Schumacher could match that.

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- The Autosport.com Team

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