F1 2010 "Driver Diaries": The Season Climax - Round 16: Button @ Suzuka!

Touring Mars

Touring Mars

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FIVE DRIVERS... FIVE RACES...

THE 2010 SEASON CLIMAX: WHO WILL COME FIRST?

Prologue

As the 2010 season nears its conclusion, there are just five men left with a realistic chance of being crowned Formula One World Champion 2010. As the season reaches it's climax, who will be screaming with joy, and who will end up in a sticky mess?

This thread will present a full report from each of the last five races, as seen from the perspective of one of the five remaining central protagonists, documenting not just the result, but the trials and tribulations of the driver throughout the course of the weekend.

Using the real F1 championship standings (as of the end of Round 14) as a starting point, I'll be simulating the rest of the season using F1 2010, and taking part in each race as a different driver.
Click to expand...

Next Report

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Round 17
Sebastian Vettel @ Korea


Race Reports

Fernando Alonso @ Marina Bay, Singapore (Sep 28, 2010)

Jenson Button @ Suzuka, Japan (Oct 5, 2010)




​


2010 Championship Standings (after Round Sixteen)

1. Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) - 225
2. Mark Webber (Red Bull) - 224
3. Jenson Button (McLaren) - 195
4. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) - 184
5. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) - 183
6. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) - 132
7. Felipe Massa (Team Alonso) - 131
8. Robert Kubica (Renault) - 112
9. Michael Schumacher (Mercedes) - 52
10. Adrian Sutil (Force India) - 48
11. Rubens Barrichello (Williams) - 31
12. Kamui Kobayashi (BMW Sauber) - 23
13. Vitaly Petrov (Renault) - 19
14. Nico Hulkenberg (Williams) - 16
15. Vitantonio Liuzzi (Force India) - 13
16. Timo Glock (Virgin) - 8
16. Sebastien Buemi (Toro Rosso) - 7
17. Pedro de la Rosa (BMW Sauber) - 6
18. Jarno Trulli (Lotus) - 4
18. Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso) - 3

* TM's results - 33 pts (2 races): 18 pts (Alonso @ Singapore); 15 pts (Button @ Suzuka)


Disclaimer: All races were performed by Touring Mars using F1 2010 on the Playstation 3. Each race was performed individually in Single Player/Grand Prix (Short Weekend) mode, under the conditions stated in each post. All images used within the thread are freely available and subject to Fair Usage policies. Although the races were 'real', the driver comments are purely ficticious. Any resemblance to actual people and circumstances is purely coincidental.​
 
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I'm a bit confused, so this is just a question for clarification:

You're recreating the last five races of the season on F1 2010 using one of the top five drivers in the Driver's Championship Standings? Am I correct?
 
Round Fifteen - Marina Bay, Singapore (Sep 28, 2010)

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Driver: Fernando Alonso
Team: Ferrari

Team Expectations: Win. Finish infront of teammate (since he is slower, remember?)
​

Introduction

On the back of a great win in Monza, and having established myself well and truly as the No. 1 driver (of all time), I was confident of a good result coming to Singapore... a circuit as close to my heart as it was close to Nelson Piquet Jr.'s face back in 2008. Singapore holds happy memories - once I'd forgotten about all that unpleasantness about race-fixing, anyway. On that subject, Felipe and I have put all that unpleasantness about Germany behind me, which is where Felipe will hopefully stay for the rest of the season.

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Oh crap, the FIA are here... act natural.​

Qualifying

Qualifying proved to be more of an ordeal than it should have been. A mistake early in the session saw me smash my nose in, something that hasn't happened since I told Flavio he was fat. This didn't leave me with as much time as I needed to perfect my qualifying lap, and a lousy 9th place was all I could manage. Felipe read the script, however, and could only muster an even lousier 11th. McLarens occupied the front row, with Lewis Hamilton on pole. My fans didn't like that.

Race - 12 Laps - Grid Position: 9th; Strategy: One Stop (end Lap 6); Weather: Clear (Difficulty: Medium, Penalties - Min; Damage: Full)

A great start off the grid saw me gain four places, and but for running slightly wide into Turn 2, I could have had 4th sewn up even earlier. As it happened, I took Rosberg on Lap 1 to take 4th place, and now only had Webber and Button between me and the leader, Lewis Hamilton. A sweet move into Turn 1 on Lap 2 saw me take Webber for 3rd, and Button was next at the chicane, leaving me in 2nd with Hamilton in my sights. Unfortunately, I was struggling to keep up (obviously a problem with the car, you understand) and I almost binned it on the tight left-hander of Turn 18 on Lap 4, and I fell back into the clutches of the chasing pack, barely holding on to 2nd place in the process. After a clean pit stop, Hamilton disappeared faster than Flavio Briatore in a lap-dancing bar, and so I focused on holding my position. And so it was for the rest of the race... I held off the attentions of Button to take second place, with Button finishing in 3rd just ahead of Webber in 4th, keeping the battle at the top tighter than a Scotsman before pay day.

Summary: One place short of where I deserve to be!

Mood:
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Epilogue: After a dismal qualifying session, I recovered well to finish high in the points... shame that my old best buddy Lewis decided to piss on my parade. Again. Still, I'm very much still in this title race, and hopefully the Ferrari team ethos of favouring their superior driver (that's me, by the way) will hold me in good stead :dopey:

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Fernando Alonso


Result:

1. Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) - 25
2. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) - 18
3. Jenson Button (McLaren) - 15
4. Mark Webber (Red Bull) - 12
5. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) - 10
6. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) - 8
7. Michael Schumacher (Mercedes) - 6
8. Robert Kubica (Renault) - 4
9. Adrian Sutil (Force India) - 2
10. Felipe Massa (Ferrari) - 1

Standings (After Round Fifteen):

1. Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) - 207
2. Mark Webber (Red Bull) - 199
3. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) - 184
4. Jenson Button (McLaren) - 180
5. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) - 171
6. Felipe Massa (Team Alonso) - 125
7. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) - 122
8. Robert Kubica (Renault) - 112
9. Michael Schumacher (Mercedes) - 52
10. Adrian Sutil (Force India) - 47
11. Rubens Barrichello (Williams) - 31
12. Kamui Kobayashi (BMW Sauber) - 21
13. Vitaly Petrov (Renault) - 19
14. Nico Hulkenberg (Williams) - 16
15. Vitantonio Liuzzi (Force India) - 13
16. Sebastien Buemi (Toro Rosso) - 7
17. Pedro de la Rosa (BMW Sauber) - 6
18. Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso) - 3

* TM - 18 pts (Alonso);

Constructors:

1. McLaren - 387
2. Red Bull - 370
3. Ferrari - 309
4. Mercedes - 174
5. Renault - 131
6. Force India - 60
7. Williams - 47
8. BMW Sauber - 27
9. Toro Rosso - 10

Season Summary​

Lewis Hamilton leads from start to finish to claim top spot in the WDC, with Alonso closing the gap to Webber. Vettel will need a good showing in the remaining races if he is to stand a chance of victory, with the bookies shortening their odds on the top three...​
 
Excellent idea, TM. I would prefer if the races were full length, but I guess that would lead to you winning.
 
👍

I would like to do some full races at some point, but at the moment I need to spend so much time in practice and qualifying that by the time I get to the race, I can't face a 2 hour race!! I would also provide more info in the write-up, e.g. lap times etc., but it would be too embarrassing!

I did a full season back in 2006 on F1:CE (albeit at 20% race distances again), but I figured that GT5 will probably mean that I don't have time to do the same again, hence I came up with the idea of finishing the current season... 💡
 
Round Sixteen - Suzuka, Japan (Oct 5, 2010)

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Driver: Jenson Button
Team: McLaren

Team Expectations: Podium, and just don't get in Lewis's way!
​

Introduction

Despite a podium in Singapore, Lewis still pulled another 10 pts further ahead of me in the title race last time around, so my goal this weekend was to beat him. Suzuka has always been a favourite circuit of mine, but the food in the hospitality tent doesn't always agree with me... I can recall spending many an hour in the Honda VIP portaloos here, I can tell you :nervous: The worst time was when I was stuck on the ferris wheel and suddenly got the runs... I can't apologise profusely enough to the poor cleaner that had to sort that lot out :ill: Aaaanyway, I was in great shape (as usual!) on arrival in Japan, but I would have been in even better shape if I had got more sleep on the night before qualifying... I had that dream again where I was being followed by a giant egg yolk, and then I couldn't get back to sleep for ages. I hate eggs!

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It's behind me, isn't it...?!?​

Qualifying

A very good qualifying session saw me comfortably into Q3, and then I aced my first flying lap with a 1.33:739, to take pole position by over a second from the Red Bulls, denying Vettel yet another pole (that guy has had more poles than Robert Kubica's girlfriend this season!). Lewis could only manage P4, and the Ferraris were further down the pack, so things were looking good to close things up in the WDC.

Race - 11 Laps - Grid Position: Pole; Strategy: One Stop (end Lap 4); Weather: Overcast (Difficulty: Professional, Penalties - Min; Damage: Full, Aids - TCS/ABS)

A good start from pole saw me comfortably take the lead into Lap 2. But then I had an untidy first sector and ran wide at the 'S' curves, letting Webber past very cheaply... I caught up to him again and we were neck and neck over the line into Lap 3 (see Vid 1), but Webber held the position. However, I would pass him at the hairpin to retake the lead! End of Lap 4, I pit from the lead, and disaster strikes... my lollipop man was finishing his book (The Grand Design by Stephen Hawking :ouch: ) and I'm in the pits for 17 seconds. I rejoin the race in 19th :indiff: I resolve to make the most of a bad situation, and immediately pass Schumacher for P18. By Lap 8, the pit stops have evened out, and I'm back in my 'real' position, a pitiful P8, with a queue of traffic awaiting me. I pass Massa and Rosberg, and on Lap 9 I make three passes (Glock at First Curve, Vettel at Degner and Trulli at the hairpin - see Vid 2), to move up into 3rd with two laps remaining. Hamilton and Webber are about 10 seconds up the road, as I hold on for a well-deserved but disappointing podium spot...



Left: Neck and neck down the pit straight with Webber; Right: From 5th to 3rd in quick succession​



Summary: Could have been better, but for the delay in the pit lane

Mood:
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Epilogue: So despite my best efforts at one of my favourite circuits, Lewis extends his lead and just holds on to top spot in the Championship, but all in all it was a good weekend for the team.

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Jenson Button


Result:

1. Mark Webber (Red Bull) - 25
2. Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) - 18
3. Jenson Button (McLaren) - 15
4. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) - 12
5. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) - 10
6. Timo Glock (Virgin) - 8
7. Felipe Massa (Ferrari) - 6
8. Jarno Trulli (Lotus) - 4
9. Kamui Kobayashi (BMW Sauber) - 2
10. Adrian Sutil (Force India) - 1

13. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) - 0 (Exclusive!!! The McLaren pit crew reaction )

Standings (After Round Sixteen):

1. Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) - 225
2. Mark Webber (Red Bull) - 224
3. Jenson Button (McLaren) - 195
4. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) - 184
5. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) - 183
6. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) - 132
7. Felipe Massa (Team Alonso) - 131
8. Robert Kubica (Renault) - 112
9. Michael Schumacher (Mercedes) - 52
10. Adrian Sutil (Force India) - 48
11. Rubens Barrichello (Williams) - 31
12. Kamui Kobayashi (BMW Sauber) - 23
13. Vitaly Petrov (Renault) - 19
14. Nico Hulkenberg (Williams) - 16
15. Vitantonio Liuzzi (Force India) - 13
16. Timo Glock (Virgin) - 8
17. Sebastien Buemi (Toro Rosso) - 7
18. Pedro de la Rosa (BMW Sauber) - 6
19. Jarno Trulli (Lotus) - 4
20. Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso) - 3

* TM's results - 33 pts (2 races): 18 pts (Alonso @ Singapore); 15 pts (Button @ Suzuka)

Constructors:

1. McLaren - 420
2. Red Bull - 407
3. Ferrari - 315
4. Mercedes - 184
5. Renault - 131
6. Force India - 61
7. Williams - 47
8. BMW Sauber - 29
9. Toro Rosso - 10
10. Virgin - 8
11. Lotus - 4
12. HRT - 0

Season Summary​

Despite a win for Webber, Lewis Hamilton holds on to the lead of the Driver's Championship but just one point. Ferrari look out of it now, as Alonso failed to score. Red Bull close the gap slightly on McLaren, but it remains too close to call with three races left. Both Virgin and Lotus score for the first time in the season at Japan, so HRT are now the only team to remain pointless.​
 
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I lol'd at the McLaren pit crew reaction. :lol:
 
I know this is off topic, but could somebody post a link to the site that has those sweet track layouts.. Other than that nice post.. Look foward to reading more..
 

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