F1 Rejects Forum Ratings - R1 Australia!!

[rachel1990]

Its back!!!

Vettel 5- Pity about the car failing but maybe it was better that he retired early...
Riccardo 9- A great drive but the car...
Red Bull 0- For me its clear cut and they had plenty of warnings...

Rosberg- 8 Pretty Easy win.
Hamilton 5 Unlucky with the car would have been a great fight for the win
Mercedes 8 Fastest car but just need more reliability

Alonso 6- Got it to the finish without many dramas and was okay
Raikkonen 4 pretty awful weekend
Ferrari 5 nowhere near Mercedes

Grosjean-5 Nearly got to the end
Maldonado-5 No dramas but its the car not him
Lotus 4 Got further than what I expected

Button 6 Outshone by his team-mate but quite good
Magnussen-10 Drive of the day already out-scored his dad and out of rejectness in his first race.
Mclaren 9- 100 times better than last season already

Hulkenberg 7- Unlucky with the tyres good decision to go to FI
Perez-4 Pretty poor all weekend
Force India- 7 okay but not spectacular

Sutil 3- who??
Gutierrez-2 Span and disappeared
Sauber-0 Awful slow and nowhere near the pace

Vergne-7 Quite good drive but outshone.
Kvyat- 9- Great Debut drive.
Toro Rosso 8- Very good the only Renault team to get both cars home and in the points.

Massa-5 Nothing he could do very Unlucky
Bottas- 7 Would have been on the podium if he hadn't gone off but recovered very well
Williams -8 they have the car they were just unlucky with the events of the race

Bianchi-5 Did nothing wrong but did try
Chilton-7 Mr talent had a good weekend and wasn't too far behind Sauber
Marussia-6 Not bad at all (apart from the start)

Kobayashi 5- Turns out the brakes failed so no blame on him
Ericsson 5 good start but I was not surprised when the car failed.
Caterham 4- need to sort out the reliability

[Meatwad]

Vettel N/A
Ricciardo 10
(Red Bull Racing 3)

Hamilton N/A
Rosberg 10
(Mercedes 8)

Alonso 8
Räikkönen 5
(Ferrari 6)

Grosjean 4
Maldonado 3
(Lotus 2)

Button 9
Magnussen 10
(McLaren 10)

Hülkenberg 8
Pérez 5
(Force India 7)

Sutil 6
Gutiérrez 3
(Sauber 4)

Vergne 9
Kvyat 10
(STR 9)

Bottas 8
Massa N/A
(Williams 7)

Bianchi 6
Chilton 9
(Marussia 6)

Kobayashi N/A
Ericsson 7
(Caterham 3)

[Salamander]

Vettel N/A - Hard to judge when he never had full power... conducted himself fairly well, at least.
Riccardo 9 - He's already exceeded my expectations for the season.
Red Bull 0 - They might have felt they were the victim of a faulty ready, but if the FIA is telling you to do something, and you fail to comply, you're gonna have a bad time.

Rosberg 8 - Easy drive up front for, controlled the race perfectly.
Hamilton N/A - See Vettel.
Mercedes 9 - They've pretty much got the formula nailed. Kudos to them.

Alonso 8 - Standard Alonso - the car was never really there for him but he dragged a decent result out regardless.
Raikkonen 3 - Pretty embarrassing for a former World Champion.
Ferrari 4 - Both cars had electrical problems in the race... while they both finished that doesn't exactly bode well.

Grosjean 7 - Did what he could.
Maldonado 7 - Ditto.
Lotus 7 - They've had a difficult off-season, but they're getting on with it.

Button 8 - A solid recovery drive from a bad grid spot and a less than optimal first stint.
Magnussen 10 - I expected great things from him and he hasn't failed to deliver.
McLaren 9 - Not the quickest car, but they made the most out of it - you can already see Ron's return has had influence.

Hulkenberg 6 - Alright I guess
Perez 3 - Basically confirmed that McLaren were fully justified in sacking him even before accounting for Magnussen's performance
Force India 5 - Not great considering they have a Mercedes engine...

Sutil 4 - Why is this guy still in F1?
Gutierrez 1 - Scratch that, why is this guy still in F1?
Sauber 2 - They were fighting the Lotus' on pace... not a good sign.

Vergne 5 - Good drive, but he's got to up his game against Kvyat if he wants to survive.
Kvyat 8 - A good debut - he seems to be very quickly finding his feet in F1.
Toro Rosso 6 - Solid, but they were beneficiaries of attrition more than anything else.

Massa N/A - Taken out on the first corner in no fault of his own.
Bottas 8 - Great recovery drive... if only he hadn't hit the wall...
Williams 8 - Cautiously optimistic.

Bianchi 6 - He got some good mileage for the team at least, and wasn't in the way.
Chilton 7 - A career best finish and a solid performance in qualifying as well... he's improving, slowly but steadily.
Marussia 8 - Well, considering their pre-season was up there with Red Bull and Lotus in terms of awfulness, they did well to get both cars home, especially with those start problems.

Kobayashi N/A - Can't exactly do much when the rear brakes die on you...
Ericsson 3 - Meh.
Caterham 4 - This could've been a good opportunity for them, but that ERS failure on Kobayashi ruined it.

[CaptainGetz12]

Vettel: N/A Although his car gave up quite early in the session, he seemed to have trouble trying to navigate the midfield. Whether it's a bad day or a start of a trend it's too soon to tell.
Ricciardo: 8 Awesome run into 2nd place that probably broke his heart when he was disqualified through his team's antics. Would of been higher if he didn't have the performance advantage which the FIA sturck him out with.
Red Bull: 2 The car is fast, but is it due to bending the rules this whole time? Seemed pretty desparate with their choices and this weekend will only further sully their sketchy reputation with the fans and with the other teams. Car reliability still persists as well and may give the defending champs a tough season.

Rosberg: 8 Hard charge at the start rewards him with a strong victory, though it was somewhat boring by the last 1/3 of the race.
Hamilton: N/A As with Vettel his race ended early due to mechanical problems, but seemed to have better pace and resolve compared to Vettel for that short time.
Mercedes: 8 Their pace is still the one to beat, though reliability is not completely overcome and can throw a spanner later in the season.

Alonso: 7 Not in the spotlight that much today, but a top 5 finish with a fairly dull Ferrari against faster cars is nothing to sneeze at.
Raikkonen: 4 He drove as if the life was sucked out of him. Made several painful mistakes and could barely fight off the Toro Rossos. Not a good way to try to earn Ferrari's support back, and certainly not the behavior that won him this race last year.
Ferrari: 6 Ferrari seems to have taken the stable but dull route at Australia and it did give some results. Raikkonen needs to get his act together, but at least the Prancing Horses finally got pit strategy down for once!

Grosjean: 5 Kept that boat of a car running in a respectable pace, but ultimately the car gave out about 80% through.
Maldonado: 4 Same as above, but being harassed by the typical backmarkers lowers his score.
Lotus: 3 Pace was not as bad some people worried it was, but it was still pretty bad. The car may not be ready to go a full distance, and this sport doesn't reward going a mere 80% of the way. Looks like a really tough season ahead for team Enstone...

Button: 7 Seemed pretty anonymous at the start, but after the safety car he really came up to speed. Strong run into the top 4 and the suprise podium decision should get his hopes up.
Magnussen: 8 Matched Hamilton's finish on his debut back in 2007. For a rookie who didn't know the course that well he showed phenomenal speed and perserverence against Ricciardo. Perhaps he really could be Mclaren's next young superstar...
Mclaren: 8 Capitalized on pace after the opening mayhem and are rewarded with double podiums in the end. Mercedes may not have as much of a cakewalk as they thought...

Hulkenberg: 7 Made the most of the chaotic start and held off Alonso and Button for a good portion of the race. His pace fell surprisingly fast after the safety car however, costing him valuable positions.
Perez: 4 Wasen't near the points position throughout the race and didn't show much pace. Slided into 10th through luck. Perhaps the car wasen't the only reason he didn't impress Mclaren last year...
Force India: 6 Got the speed to mix it with the big guys, but late race pace seems to fall considerably while everyone else picks up pace.

Gutierrez: 3 Stuck with the backmarkers pretty much the whole time. Not much improvement from last year apparently.
Sutil: 4 In the same shoes as Perez, except he was even slower and even less likely to pipe a top 10 finish.
Sauber 2 Oh dear, were even slower than the Lotuses and were nothing more than backmarkers today. Hopefully this race was a fluke for them and not a sign of a new trend...

Vergne: 7 Put his foot in the door and never let go once in the mid points. Didn't expect him to have such a flying performance to be honest. Don't count this Frenchman's usefullness over yet Red Bull
Kvyat: 7 Mixed it with the Ferrari's for much of the time. May be even more of an awesome debut than Magnussen's was.
Toro Rosso: 7 Surprise performance of the weekend. Good to see that Red Bull management havent skimped out on their B-team for once!

Bottas: 8 Pushed a bit too far and his podium prospects pissed away, but his strong comeback from the back more than makes up for it. Passing Raikkonen so flawlessly and seemlingly easily showed how much pace he had.
Massa: N/A Was caught by a rampaging Kobayashi at the start. Can't say much else about his projected perfomance unfortunately.
Williams: 7 Really shown their pace during the race, but qualifying needs some improvement and Bottas needs to tone it down a bit if Williams wants to become a top 5 team again. (Please don't let Enoch's curse smash their chances... )

Bianchi: 2 Was he even in this race? Retired from the back for unknown reasons.
Chilton: 3 He beat his teammate! Otherwise he was wallowing in the back.
Marussia: 3 Started dead last due to a stall and never left the back of the pack afterward. Were they disillusioned or is their pace pretty awful as well?

Kobayashi: N/A Started the race by blasting into Massa. Even if it was due to brake failure it was still a pretty bad way to announce your return to F1.
Ericsson: 4 Was in a position to fight for a top 10, but didn't seem to capitalize. Sunk back down towards the tail end of the field by halfway through.
Caterham: 3 Not a good day, not one bit. Mechanical failures and Ericsson's slowcaoch performance could spell trouble, but Kamui's pace in quali shows that they do have some Aces up their sleeves.

[Salamander]

Vettel: 4 Although his car gave up quite early in the season, he seemed to have trouble trying to navigate the midfield. Whether it's a bad day or a start of a trend it's too soon to tell.

You do realise he was down on power on the formation laps, right?

[CaptainGetz12]

Vettel: 4 Although his car gave up quite early in the season, he seemed to have trouble trying to navigate the midfield. Whether it's a bad day or a start of a trend it's too soon to tell.

You do realise he was down on power on the formation laps, right?

I did not know that be honest, yet Ricciardo didn't seem to have any problems with it...

[Salamander]

Vettel: 4 Although his car gave up quite early in the season, he seemed to have trouble trying to navigate the midfield. Whether it's a bad day or a start of a trend it's too soon to tell.

You do realise he was down on power on the formation laps, right?

I did not know that be honest, yet Ricciardo didn't seem to have any problems with it...

Because Ricciardo didn't have that issue. You seriously didn't hear Vettel complaining about that on the radio? Or the fact that he was a dozen seconds off the pace before he retired?

[rachel1990]

I agree- Vettel going out of the race was 100% not his fault.

[jackanderton]

Vettel was down on 150 horsepower. Why don't you navigate the midfield on 70% of the grunt of the other cars and see how you get on!

[CaptainGetz12]

I agree- Vettel going out of the race was 100% not his fault.

Heh, since I didn't know that i'll change that then. I may have to change Hamilton's rating as well

[go_Rubens]

Vettel - 4 - The car let us down of any chance of seeing what he could do, but he was smashed by Ricciardo all weekend.
Ricciardo - 10 - The team bathplugged up, not Daniel.
Red Bull - 0 - The team seem incredibly desperate for results. Well, trying to bend the rules won't help. What a bunch of muppets this weekend. Partially summed up Kamaha.

Hamilton - 6 - He achieved pole and had great pace then, but the car let him down.
Rosberg - 9 - He just had everyone nailed in a coffin.
Mercedes - 8 - I think they've officially nailed the new formula, but for a few reliability issues.

Alonso - 8 - He drove well in the Ferrari. Certainly deserved 4th.
Räikkönen - 3 - It wasn't all him, but his drive was more than pathetic when he was fighting with Toro Rosso.
Ferrari - 4 - At this rate, Alonso may as well leave. Ferrari have done crap in giving him a car he can win the championship with. I can feel his frustration brewing. As for Kimi, he and the team need to sort out issues with his car.

Grosjean - 6 - Did as much as he could.
Maldonado - 5 - See Grosjean, but slower.
Lotus - 5 - Did better than what most people would have said of them before the race.

Button - 7 - Had a below par first stint, but then he got a deserved, if not lucky, podium.
Magnussen - 10 - Unrejectifies himself just the way Hamilton did.
McLaren - 8 - I see race wins coming from Magnussen and Button both. They could challenge Mercedes.

Hülkenberg - 8 - He drove respectably, but his pace dropped in the final 1/3 of the race.
Pérez - 4 - Puncture on lap 1 thanks to Gutiérrez and sucked since. Didn't deserve a point.
Force India - 5 - Respectable first race to the year, but nothing more.

Sutil - 3 - Slow and driving a dog of a car equals horrible race.
Gutiérrez - 0 - He doesn't deserve a point in the ratings. Get Simona her Superlicense or bring in Giedo quickly.
Sauber - 0 - They were essentially backmarkers.

Vergne - 7 - Did well, but could have finished ahead of Räikkönen.
Kvyat - 9 - He can say he legitimately raced Räikkönen on his début, and becomes the youngest point scorer ever.
Toro Rosso - 8 - Only Renault team to bring 2 cars home, and both in the points.

Massa - 5 - Can't really tell where he could have ended up, but he'd have likely got a top 5 if his pace earlier meant anything.
Bottas - 10 - Great recovery drive, but played chicken with the T10 wall by hitting it not once, but twice, and causing a need for a recovery drive. 6th is well deserved though.
Williams - 9 - A little room to improve, but have a strong base to build upon.

Bianchi - 4 - Unclassified 8 laps down, but got good mileage for Marussia.
Chilton - 5 - 20 for 20, and beckoning for more than 14th.
Marussia - 9 - Considering where they were in testing, this was a great day.

Kobayashi - 5 - Great qualifying, where he outpaced Vettel almost all of Q2, but brake failure caused first corner crash.
Ericsson - 6 - He ran 12th in the opening laps thanks to chaos, and could have done better without a mechanical issue.
Caterham - 1 - Slow and unreliable may define their year.

[Dan B]

Vettel: 4: His car died on him; that can't be blamed on him. He did seem a bit lost in midfield though, but maybe that was just because he was near the Perez-Gutierrez mess when the TVs picked up on him.
Ricciardo: 9: A great drive, but it was all for naught.
Red Bull: 0: Rules are rules; you cannot break them, especially if the FIA is telling you during the race to fix it. While Ricciardo's second place was great, the fact remains that the team broke the rules and consequences must be dealt with.

Rosberg: 10: A perfect drive; not much to say there.
Hamilton: 5: Managed a bit better than Vettel but still retired with mechanical gremlins.
Mercedes: 7: While they are probably the best team right now, they're still not invincible. Here's hoping that they can keep this forward momentum for the next few races.

Alonso: 7: Rather typical race for Alonso with a car that's slower than it should be. Again.
Raikkonen: 3: Sodman strikes again. Mistakes abound, and was scrapping with Bottas, Hulkenberg, and the Toro Rossos and often being harassed by them. Unimpressive.
Ferrari: 5: Not surprised at the result, considering testing. However, for a top tier team they need to be higher, and Raikkonen needs to get his act together.

Grosjean: 6: Did decently considering the hell Lotus went through with testing, and higher than I expected (before the car crapped out).
Maldonado: 5: A few mistakes in practice, but otherwise on par with Grosjean.
Lotus: 5: Did better than I thought considering the car might not be completely fleshed out.

Magnussen: 9: Flawless drive to the podium, which McLaren sorely needed.
Button: 8: A great drive; one his father would be proud of.
McLaren: 8: A much needed result considering the mess they had last year.

Hulkenberg: 7: Dropped off the pace towards the end but otherwise held on and got points for the Force.
Perez: 5: I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt in saying something must've been bent on his car after he got punted by Gutierrez (along with that puncture he received). However, was anonymous and should've been with Hulkenberg considering the car and his skill.
Force India: 7: This might be a bit generous but I do believe that the car is good. Now they need to apply the correct strategies and not get unlucky with other drivers.

Gutierrez: 2: Did his best to become the second coming of Riccardo Rosset.
Sutil: 3: Anonymous and slow; not much else.
Sauber: 2: A terrible beginning for a midfield team. The car is slow, Sutil drove like he was uninterested with F1, and Gutierrez is taking a spot that should be given to someone else (Sirotkin, di Silvestro, etc).

Vergne: 7: Did surprisingly well and netted points for Toro Rosso. Let's hope he can continue that.
Kvyat: 7: Hassled Raikkonen and Alonso quite a bit, and drove quite well. You wouldn't think he was a rookie with a performance like his.
Toro Rosso: 7: Probably the best of the Renault powered teams thus far, since both of their cars finished well within the points.

Bottas: 7: A good drive but that wall smack was the end of any podium shot. Still, his performance shows he is quick, and if he can smooth out his driving, he might be a regular points scorer.
Massa: N/A: Was robbed of a race.
Williams: 7: Qualifying needs work, but the car does have speed.

Bianchi: 4: Did what he could with that diabolical start.
Chilton: 5: See above, and he finished.
Marussia: 5: Not great, but getting there.

Kobayashi: N/A: Brake failure means no race for him (and Massa). No fault of his own, but not a good way to start the season.
Ericsson: 4: Didn't see much of him.
Caterham: 4: Car failures means they can't do much in racing. Better luck next time.

[Salamander]

I'd like to make a request for this and all future ratings threads. Specifically, that we don't rate people based on races they didn't have. I think it's fairly ridiculous that we have people rating Vettel and Hamilton's "races", when you can just look at the fastest laps chart - not even watch the race, just going by that chart - to see they clearly did not have a properly working car at any point during the race.

[Meatwad]

I'd like to make a request for this and all future ratings threads. Specifically, that we don't rate people based on races they didn't have. I think it's fairly ridiculous that we have people rating Vettel and Hamilton's "races", when you can just look at the fastest laps chart - not even watch the race, just going by that chart - to see they clearly did not have a properly working car at any point during the race.

That's a good idea. Traditionally, ratings have not been given if a driver failed to start the race. I think the question of whether a driver should receive a rating in this case depends on why the driver failed to start/qualify. To present some examples (from before the ratings existed), I think Di Grassi should have received a rating for his "efforts" in Japan 2010 while Schumacher's race in France 1996 would not have been rated. And constructor ratings should be given even when neither car manages to start. A minimum rating would have been completely deserved for HRT in the first races of 2011 and 2012.

[Salamander]

I'd like to make a request for this and all future ratings threads. Specifically, that we don't rate people based on races they didn't have. I think it's fairly ridiculous that we have people rating Vettel and Hamilton's "races", when you can just look at the fastest laps chart - not even watch the race, just going by that chart - to see they clearly did not have a properly working car at any point during the race.

That's a good idea. Traditionally, ratings have not been given if a driver failed to start the race. I think the question of whether a driver should receive a rating in this case depends on why the driver failed to start/qualify. To present some examples (from before the ratings existed), I think Di Grassi should have received a rating for his "efforts" in Japan 2010 while Schumacher's race in France 1996 would not have been rated. And constructor ratings should be given even when neither car manages to start. A minimum rating would have been completely deserved for HRT in the first races of 2011 and 2012.

Yeah, that seems fair to me.

[dinizintheoven]

Vettel was down on 150 horsepower. Why don't you navigate the midfield on 70% of the grunt of the other cars and see how you get on!

What I wouldn't have given for that opportunity...

[wsrgo]

Bianchi: 2 Was he even in this race? Retired from the back for unknown reasons.

Banchi finished seven laps down as his starter took a long more time to get functional than Chilton's, and was unclassified because he did not complete 90 percent of the race distance as he did only 50 laps opposed to 57 for the race.

[James1978]

Here goes:

Vettel 4 - only marking him on qualifying, he was pretty poor.
Ricciardo 9 - poor guy, first podium at home then this
Red Bull 2 - they get that for managing to get one car home even if illegally, after all their troubles in testing

Hamilton 9 - like Vettel only marking him on qually but he did pretty well there, and had no control over what happened in the race
Rosberg 9 - very measured but would have loved to see how he would have fared having to race his teammate
Mereces 8 - lose marks for unreliability

Alonso 8 - he's very good at dragging good points out when the car's less than great isn't he?
Raikkonen 5 - very lacklustre.
Ferrari 5 - see Kimi

Grosjean 7 - problems were the car rather than him
Maldonado 6 - see above but he was abit slower than Grosjean
Lotus 1 - no it's not good getting your cars to half-distance. You won the race last year and were still getting podiums at the end of last year!

Button 8 - good strategy but won't have been happy finishing behind his rookie teammate
Magnussen 10 - breath of fresh air. Best debut performance since 2007, if not better.
McLaren 9 - they're back!

Hulkenberg 8 - did what he could but he was struggling to keeep others behind in the race, but that meant he was qualifying higher than he should
Perez 5 - wow, McLaren's decision to replace him with Magnussen looks good now doesn't it? Where was he?
Force India 6 - the worst Mercedes powered team

Sutil 5 - boring
Gutierrez 5 - boring
Sauber 4 - boring - they're missing the Hulk aren't they? Or even Kobayashi and Perez!

Vergne 7 - points good for him, even though he shouldn't really have lost out to Kimi
Kvyat 9 - shaded in the debuts performances by Magnussen but still very impressive for someone who looks about 14.
Toro Rosso 9 - the only Renault-powered team to bring two cars home (and in the points) is very good nonetheless

Massa 7 - for qually only
Bottas 8 - speed to burn, if only for that small error
Williams 9 - like McLaren, they're back!!

Kobayashi 7 - was good to get a Caterham in Q2, will forgive him for the accident now I know about the brake failure
Ericsson 6 - only noticed him in the safety car period in all truth
Caterham 3 - a double DNF in a race of relative attrition could be very bad news for them in their private battle with Marussia

Bianchi 6 - not his fault
Chilton 7 - good to outqualify his teammatewhich is a rare-ish thing
Marussia 6 - bad to have both cars not start cleanly but how important could that 13th place be?

[DOSBoot]

Vettel - 4: Bad qualifying, destroyed by his teammate, and out early.
Ricciardo - 9: Excellent drive. But his team screwed it up for him.
Red Bull - 1: Don't do the crime, if you're not going to do the time.

Hamilton - 6: Pole position, but car let him down.
Rosberg - 10: Was flawless the entire race.
Mercedes - 8: Some reliability issues here and there, but looking good early on.

Alonso - 7: Solid run in the best sense.
Raikkonen - 3: Beaten by Bottas, and was getting hammered by the Torro Rossos.
Ferrari - 6: Reliable. But not near the top.

Grosjean - 6: - Did the best he could.
Maldonado - 5 - Did good, but not as fast as Grojean.
Lotus - 5: Better than what most people were expecting.

Button - 7: Average early on, and made a good comeback.
Magnussen - 10: Debut unrejectification! This guy may have a bright future ahead of him.
McLaren - 9: Looks like their gamble paid off.

Hülkenberg - 7: Great early on, but dropped near the end.
Perez - 4: Never recovered from his blowout.
Force India - 5: Not bad, but needs improvement.

Sutil - 3: Slow, slow, slow.
Gutiérrez - 1: This guy is still in F1?
Sauber - 2: Not looking good for the team.

Vergne - 7: Good run, but couldn't hold off Kimi.
Kvyat - 9: Into the record books, and into the points.
Toro Rosso - 8: Great all weekend long, and a double points finish.

Massa - 5: Qualified well, but out on first lap.
Bottas - 10: Wow! This guy was amazing the whole race! Who knows what could he have achieved had it not been for the blowout?!
Williams - 9: Looking very good this year.

Bianchi - 5: Almost lasted till the end of the race.
Chilton - 6: Outqualified his teammate for once.
Marussia - 6: The best of the backmarkers

Kobayashi - 5: Good qualifying. But crashed on the first lap.
Ericsson - 6: Was running as high as 12th, but the engine blew.
Caterham - 4: Ok on the track. But reliability needs to be addressed.

[Alextrax52]

Red Bull 2
Ricciardo 9
(Vettel N/A)
What a storming drive it was for Ricciardo and it was such a shame to see him get kicked out of the results but the rules are the rules and RBR should know that. The fact that the FIA were telling them to change the problem and they refused once again brings their sportsmanship into question. Sadly for Seb he never got it together in qualifying but any hopes of proving his worth were taken away after just 5 laps with his engine woes. A weekend to forget for the world champion

Mercedes 9
Rosberg 10
(Hamilton N/A)
What a fantastic drive from Rosberg just confirming that Merc are going to be up there should it run well. They aren't invincible though as Hamilton's problems confirm and I know it's just 1 race but Mercedes have laid down a real marker for the 18 races to follow. Rosberg can also finally get the recognition he deserves if he keeps this up

Ferrari 7
Alonso 8
Raikkonen 4
If Alonso thought the car performance would be in his favor for once he's been given a real shock over Australia. The Ferrari is clearly not ready yet as Alonso struggled to pass Hulk's Force India which was clearly slower. This allowed Button to jump him and take what turned out to be that fortunate podium once Dan was DSQ'ed. But while Alonso gave his all Raikkonen just seemed ill at ease with the Brakes and the many lock ups down at turns 9 and 10 proved it. A pretty tardy race and one that Kimi will have to put behind him if he wants to get at Alonso

Lotus 5
Grosjean 7
Maldonado 6
Well what a difference 12 months make eh. From celebrating a win to being happy with a 45 lap stint done. But considering they couldn't do more than a few laps on Friday it is a step in the right direction and I think we'll see Lotus slightly better in Malaysia. Grosjean had the Saubers in his back pocket before retirement (Guti partially because of the opening lap) and would have come 11th while Maldonado was OK for a much maligned man but the drag race between the pair suggest that Grosjean may just have the better year

Mclaren 9
Button 9
Magnussen 10
Well what a phoenix style performance Mclaren have achieved. After an awful 2013 the Macs were really impressive. Magnussen deserved his podium finish the first for a Dane while Button used 2 really key moments to get the podium. First was pitting under the SC first which lifted him to 6th and then undercutting Alonso and Hulk at the last stops. Sure it cost him tire life at the end but overall a strong run from JB. Mclaren are back

Force India 7
Hulkenberg 8
Perez 5
Hulkenberg was there or thereabouts all day and he seemed to have a car slower than Alonso's with the locking up moments proving that. A solid 6th his reward and i'll be interested to see if he can keep this run going. Perez had the opening lap accident but even with that I don't think he would have beaten Hulk and he only picked up a lucky point due to Dan's DSQ and attrition. Must do better Sergio

Sauber 4
Sutil 4
Gutierrez 3
Well aren't they missing Hulk. I didn't see a Sauber all race until the end and it's really embarrassing that of the 3 cars who didn't score the Sauber's were 2 of them and when the 3rd guy is Max Chilton then you know you've had a shocking day. From what i saw it looked like Guti hit Perez and caused the accident. I can't believe I'm saying this but I wouldn't mind if Chilton replaced him next season because he's been that bad. What made it worse was the fact that Sutil didn't seem to have any serious woes and were just slow. Get a grip

Toro Rosso 8
Vergne 8
Kvyat 8
Toro Rosso performed well considering they have the Renault power and Sauber have Ferrari's. Sure the rain helped but I didn't expect the STR's to hold on to the their former engine suppliers for most of the race. Vergne looked set to get a 9 for being more impressive today than he was in the entire 2nd half of 2013 but sloppy errors which allowed the Finns through dock him a mark. Young Kvyat did an oustanding job and didn't seem fazed by who he raced out there so kudos to him

Williams 8
Bottas 8
(Massa N/A)
If Mclaren performed a phoenix what does that make Williams? Bottas was one of the stars of the race out their and took an excellent 5th but the wall incident means I can't give anymore than 8 but surely a maiden podium already looks like a real possibility right now. Shame we never got to see Massa go well because I think with experience he might have done what Bottas didn't. I understand he's frustrated but I think his reaction to Kamui was a tad rash.

Marussia 7
Chilton 7
Bianchi 7
Good effort for Marussia to have both cars still running. Chilton had a solid race for once and takes a career best 13th which will set him up well. I'd love to see what Bianchi could do though as he unlapped himself against Chilton and if Maxie can get it in the top 15 I think Jules could snaffle a point. Let's hope he is given that chance soon

Caterham 7
Ericsson 6
(Kobayashi N/A)
Caterham got a Q2 position but once again something goes wrong on the first lap and Kamui's debut is out of his hands with brake failure leaving him unable to stop the car. Ericsson wasn't as bad as the sarcastic Ericssonera suggest because he ran with Chilton in a supposedly faster car and held him at bay solidly until he retired. A solid race from Marcus up to that point