The top 10 world sportscar drivers of 2012

The top 10 world sportscar drivers of 2012

1. Andre Lotterer (D)
Championship position: 1st (172.5 points)
Team: Audi Sport Team Joest
Starts: 8
Wins: 3
Poles: 2
Fastest laps: 1

Another impressive season reinforced Lotterer's position as Audi's main man - the new McNish or Kristensen, if you like.

There's not much else to say, except that he is a deserving world champion.

2. Alex Wurz (A)
Championship position: 3rd (96)
Team: Toyota Racing
Wins: 3
Poles: 2
Fastest laps: 0

Toyota's team leader proved that he's still got the hunger and the speed (witness two pole positions).

There was little to choose between him and Lapierre, but he gets the nod as the best Toyota driver for reasons explained below.

3. Nicolas Lapierre (F)
Championship position: 3rd (96)
Team: Toyota Racing
Wins: 3
Poles: 0
Fastest laps: 3

Only an uncharacteristic mistake in Bahrain prevents a higher rating.

But for a needless - and admittedly uncharacteristic - clash with the Strakka HPD under the cover of darkness at Sakhir, he'd be nipping at the heals of Lotterer for the title as best driver.

4. Benoit Treluyer (F)
Championship position: 1st (172.5)
Team: Audi Sport Team Joest
Wins: 3
Poles 1
Fastest laps: 0

The Frenchman again proved just shy of Lotterer in every department.

There were two blots on his copybook in 2012, most notably the clash with the Aston Martin at Fuji. On another day, it could have lost him and his team-mates the championship.

5. Neel Jani (CH)
Championship position: 4th (86.5)
Team: Rebellion Racing
Wins: 0
Poles: 0
Fastest laps: 0

Another faultless season with Rebellion for Jani begs the question: when will the factories come knocking?

The Swiss, in only his third full season of sportscars, proved that he has a massive future in the discipline just about every time he took to the track: he can pull out a lap on demand in qualifying, is ultra-consistent in the race and doesn't make mistakes.

6. Tom Kristensen (DK)
Championship position: 2nd (159)
Team: Audi Sport Team Joest
Wins: 1
Poles: 0
Fastest laps: 0

There appear to be reasons for his and McNish's lack of consistency over the season, but it wasn't a great year for the eight-time Le Mans winner.

The Dane shades his team-mate, as much as anything, because his mistake (a spin at Interlagos) was more forgettable than McNish's accident at Le Mans.

7. Allan McNish (GB)
Championship position: 2nd (159)
Team: Audi Sport Team Joest
Wins: 1
Poles: 2
Fastest laps: 2

His season was defined by, and will be remembered for, his Le Mans shunt. The chase was on and it was a race that was going to be won or lost by seconds, but it was the result of a major misjudgement.

McNish proved with two poles that the one-lap speed is there, but there were too many times when the consistency over a stint wasn't there.

8. Danny Watts (GB)
Championship position: 7th (64)
Team: Strakka Racing
Wins: 0
Poles: 0
Fastest laps: 0

Super-quick and capable of superhuman effort, Watts was the stand-out HPD driver.

He was the man most likely to take the fight to Jani and Rebellion in the privateer P1 'class'.

9. Karun Chandhok (IND)
Championship position: 10th (50.5)
Team: JRM Racing
Wins: 0
Poles: 0
Fastest laps: 0

Ex-Formula 1 driver took to sportscar racing after an initial culture shock - he was wide-eyed after his first laps in the JRM HPD at Sebring.

But he knuckled down and emerged from the season as the favoured man at JRM.

10. Marcel Fassler (CH)
Championship position: 1st (172.5)
Team: Audi Sport Team Joest
Wins: 3
Poles: 0
Fastest laps: 1

The quick and consistent Marcel Fassler didn't always turn up in 2012.

The inconsistency that has been a constant through his career with Audi was all too apparent this season.

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- The Autosport.com Team

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