F1 | Promoted, saved and relegated: the report cards of the protagonists of 2018

It seems like we are still in the thick of Hamilton's fifth world championship, so much so that this last season has been long and at times exhausting. Unforgettable for some, troubled for others. Summing up, in the necessary end-of-year report, we notice that there are those who have surprised or confirmed themselves, those who have brought the loaf home and those who have disappointed expectations. We see.

PROMOTED

Lewis Hamilton (10 cum laude) No words are needed, because really nothing more can be added to the boundless talent of a driver who has proven to currently have no rivals in terms of race management and pure speed. When you are an anvil you stand, when you are a hammer you beat. A Neapolitan proverb that Hamilton followed to the letter goes more or less like this. Zero errors, maximization of results on difficult days, relentless thrust on the best ones. With the merit of transforming a hard-fought season into unparalleled domination.

Kimi Raikkonen (9) In some ways a surprise. A splendid veteran who doesn't give up, who right in his farewell step with Ferrari pulls off an (almost) flawless season, peppered with twelve podiums and ennobled by Austin's wonderful ride. It was unthinkable to think of him being so close to Vettel in terms of performance, let alone ahead of him, which happened very often in the second part of the season. Foot, head and heart, the lifeline of the indecipherable 2018 Ferrari driver.

Charles Leclerc (9) Sauber sublimates with seventh places and top ten in qualifying. It makes extraordinary results seem normal. The stigmata of the predestined are all there, it is no coincidence that Ferrari took him after half the championship and locked him down. Someone like this is rarely born...

Verstappen (8,5) The mistakes at the beginning of the season were probably the last sliding doors in the career of this young phenomenon, who has finally matured, concentrated, aggressive but less impetuous or prone to misconduct. The roadmap at the end of the championship demonstrates all the driving quality, even with an inferior car, and he almost ends up on the world podium. The story is always the same, give a few more horses to this very fast and spectacular talent in duels and he will be there to compete for the world championship. He's really ready.

Daniel Ricciardo (8) Competitive, winning, charismatic. Only Red Bull was missing, in a season spent largely separated at home and with an unreliable engine. The step from victories to retirements in succession was all too short, but nothing can erase the races in China and Monte Carlo and the many (too many) comebacks from the bottom.

Nico Hulkenberg (7,5) Not a sensational season, but in a championship dominated by the usual six cars he earned the title of "first of the humans", with many points placings - despite bad luck haunting him quite a bit - and the final seventh place in the drivers' standings . Consistent and reliable, the usual Hulk.

Fernando Alonso (7) And in the end he too said enough. Too much sweat in vain, too many battles against mills in the wind, too much frustration at not being able to run where he deserves again and again. Yet McLaren, in yet another disastrous season, keeps it afloat, outclassing an impalpable Vandoorne.

QUIET SALVATION

Kevin Magnussen (6,5) There were excesses, the usual spectacular aggression too. Magnussen is like that, take it or leave it. But when he's on the day he's an old-school runner who's very nice to look at.

Sergio Perez ed Esteban Ocon (6,5) They take a step back like Force India, but between corporate problems and prompt re-foundations they still often end up in the points. In Belgium they make fire and flames, confirming themselves as riders of a certain level, but without a bicycle you want to pedal...

Pierre Gasly (6,5) A few flashes of class are enough for him to secure the coveted Red Bull seat; will he be a threat to Verstappen or a precocious second driver?

Carlos Sainz (6,5) Substantial, professional performance, few flaws. But still a bit behind the Hulk. The season remains positive overall and earns him (if one can speak of a prize) the seat of the fallen noble McLaren.

Marcus Ericsson (6) In terms of talent and freshness he cannot keep up with the Leclerc phenomenon, yet he confirms himself as a solid professional, with some good runs in the points before in what was probably his last year as a starter in F1.

RETROCEED

Sebastian Vettel (5) Like the poles and the victories, overshadowed and nullified by a series of more or less gratuitous and unexpected errors, an involution that went hand in hand with that of the single-seater, only to then timidly find itself at the end of the championship, when however the oxen were already ran away. It can't go like this, Seb wasn't himself for half the championship, it will be up to the team to put him in the conditions to give the best of himself and it will be up to him to find a serenity that has evidently been lost.

Romain Grosjean (5,5) A flash of light, in Austria, but too many shadows and errors scattered throughout a season certainly not up to the level of the last ones.

Sergey Sirotkin and Lance Stroll (5) Young victims of an undriveable Williams. Powerless in the face of Grove's technical collapse. They can't do more than drag themselves along the track, the comparison is more or less equal, both wouldn't demerit the category, but only Stroll will be able to redeem himself in F1, with the move to the new Force India.

Brendon Hartley (5) He is surprised by the dismissal but he has more concreteness than speed and in F1 the latter is also needed quite a lot.

Valtteri Bottas (4) It's perfect wingman (squire). When it is the boss himself who brands you like this, then the hopes of freeing yourself or making yourself count become close to absolute zero. There is no hope, there are no motivations, only a sad role of supporting the captain, and disturbing the opponents (well executed like a loyal soldier). He will have earned reconfirmation for 2019, but 2018 could have irreparably marked his career. Ocon is looming there and Valtteri's zero victories as well as the fifth place finish sound a lot like a sentence of condemnation.

Stoffel Vandoorne (4) Alonso scores half the time in the points. Forty points less, almost always behind in qualifying. From emerging talent to mere extra, to carneade destined to be forgotten, it took a moment. Stoffel, unable to find good performances and too often in difficulty with the difficult McLaren, lost his place due to a really bad season.

TEAM

MERCEDES (10) A tightrope walker who knows (too) well how to walk the tightrope of the rules, interpreting them as he pleases. A very rich and equally united team, good at overcoming moments of difficulty calmly and at the same time with enthusiasm, always returning to the front in the end with the right developments. The gap with the others is still too wide, he suffers for a while, but when the going gets tough he becomes uncatchable.

ferrari (5,5) Chaotic, confusing, not ready yet. Too much wasted performance, with the aggravating circumstance of continuing to get the updates wrong, going forward and then going back, confusing and confusing. You gave hope and deluded yourself, but just as matches last 90 minutes, seasons last twenty-odd games. Spectacular first half, but the total collapse of the second half stands out more.

Red Bull (6) He always gives the idea of ​​being able to give more. Despite the problems with the Renault engine, it's a shame to see it grow exponentially only in the last few races, instead being absent for most of the world championship. However, only one victory less than Ferrari.

William (4) Designing such a bland and actually slow single-seater, having the Mercedes engine and Paddy Lowe as technical director, it was a difficult task. In Grove they did it.

Antonino Rendina

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