McLaren Honda arent trash and Bianchi goes to Sauber

AUS:

Pole: M. Schumacher - 1:26.503

Fastest Lap: K. Raikkonen - 1:31.091

The World Champion kicked off his title defense in perfect fashion, getting a dominant pole and winning an unprecedented 100th Grand Prix. But the Mercedes dominance was under threat by Sebastian Vettel, who had moved to Ferrari. Vettel qualified an impressive 3rd on his debut for Ferrari, and then leapfrogged Rosberg in the pitstops, finishing in 2nd place 13 seconds behind Schumacher. Honda's return to Formula 1 was satisfactory, with both McLaren's finishing and getting P5 and P6, meaning they were 2nd in the constructors championship.

MAL:

Pole: M. Schumacher - 1:49.896

Fastest Lap: K. Raikkonen - 1:41.685

Schumacher was challenged for pole by Sebastian Vettel, but just about managed to fend him off by 0.012 seconds. But Vettel jumped Schumacher off the line and led into turn one. The Ferrari had formidable straight line speed, so Vettel was able to fend him off, but the DRS advantage was too much and Schumacher got back in the lead by lap 4. But the race was not over yet. Mercedes made the desicion to 3 stop instead of the 2 stop strategy Ferrari was on, and when the safety car came out, Schumacher's 6 second lead evaporated, meaning they had to switch to a two stop. Schumacher had eaten his tyres up too much, and when the safety car peeled into the pits, Vettel pounched and snatched back the lead at the Langkawi Curve, and held it to the end of the race. Raikkonen finished 3rd, meaning it was a double podium for Ferrari for the first time since 2013. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen finished in 9th place, meaning the 17 year old became the youngest points scorer in F1 history.

BAH:

Pole: M.Schumacher - 1:32.911

Fasetst Lap: K. Raikkonen - 1:36.113

Michael Schumacher clinched his 4th consecuetive pole, but once again it was not his teammate alongside him, but Sebastian Vettel in the Ferrari with Kimi Raikkonen in 3rd. This time, Schumacher held the lead into the first corner, as Vettel made a bad start and dropped behind Raikkonen and Hamilton. Vettel disposed of Hamilton on lap 3, and the two red cars set off after Schumacher. Ferrari kept Kimi out longer, as the Ferrari was kinder on its tyres than the silver arrows, and stopped six laps later than Michael and Sebastian. Vettel sliced down the from 13 to 7 seconds by the time it was Kimi's time to stop, and the Finn emerged just behind Vettel. Vettel let Kimi go and the Iceman started hunting down the 7 time champion like a hungry dog, getting past him just five laps later. Kimi was then told to back up Schumacher, and obliged. Sebastian was right on Schumacher's gearbox just two laps later, constantly keeping him in check until on lap 32, Sebastian got him on the rundown to turn 4. All Schumacher could do now, was drive for a podium, and the battle for the victory was between the two Ferrari's. In the second round of stops, Kimi succesfully defended Sebastian's undercut and drove home to take his first win in over 2 years. Meanwhile behind, Hamilton and Rosberg carried out an exciting duel for 4th, the Williams driver coming out on top. Sebastian now had the lead in the championship, and was well in the hunt for a 5th world title.

CHN:

Pole: N. Rosberg - 1:35.777

Fastest Lap: S. Vettel - 1:42.595

Nico finally beat Schumacher to end the 7-time champions pole streak, and just like last year, controlled the race to win his 3rd Chinese Grand Prix. It had seemed like Nico had finally found his form from 2014 again, as he simply did everything better than Michael managed that weekend. Vettel got another podium, limiting the damage to Schumacher in the championship after a weekend where Ferrari had no answer for Mercedes. Daniil Kvyat made an ambitious move on Fernando Alonso on lap one, gaining him 8th place, and Max Verstappen pulled off a gutsy maneouver under braking for the hairpin after the long straight on Felipe Massa in the Sauber. But now, the title was a three horse race between the two Mercedes and Sebastian Vettel.

ESP:

Pole: N. Rosberg - 1:24.512

Fastest Lap: M. Schumacher - 1:29.026

Rosberg dominated once again, with a dominant pole lap and victory driver. Michael started alongside him again, but once again wore out his tyres too fast, and Hamilton, who had managed his Williams' tyres perfectly, got the better of both him and Vettel to take a great second place and his first podium of the year. But despite Nico's domination, it was Michael who had a slender 3 point lead over Vettel, whilst Nico's two flawless victories brought within one point of Vettel and within four of the lead of the championship. The main takeaway from the race was that it was becoming clear that it would be a very tall order for those who wanted to take on Mercedes and beat them.

MNC:

Pole: J. Button - 1:15.956

Fastest lap: D. Kvyat - 1:17.992

The order was massively shook up by the tight and twisty nature of Monaco. Mercedes were no where near the dominant selves, qualifying all the way back on rows 3 and 4. However, it was the Red Bulls, who after a shoddy start of the season, finally looked to have found some pace, using their great chassis to their advantages. However, McLaren had just a good chassis, and, although not as quick, Jenson had a remarkable lap to take his first pole since 2012. However, McLaren's hopes of a victory quickly faded, as Daniel Ricciardo got the better run down into St. Devote and stormed off into the lead. Kvyat was also right on Button's tail, and got past him on the pitstops despite Jenson stopping earlier. Kvyat was now reeling in Ricciardo at a rate of knots, but this is Monaco, and Daniel kept his cool despite his teammates clear pace advantage, and won his first ever Monaco Grand Prix. Despite a poor weekend for Mercedes, Schumacher retained his lead in the drivers championship , albeit by a solitary point, as Ferrari had almost as poor a weekend as them.

CAN:

Pole: M. Schumacher - 1:14.316

Fastest Lap: K. Raikkonen - 1:17.591

Michael Schumacher returned to pole position for the first time since Bahrain. However, the Williams, who qualified 3rd and 4th, made a lightning start and usurped both Mercedes into turn 1, with Hamilton leading. Using the straight line advantage, the Williams retained their one and two positions coming into the first pitstops, but Michael stopped a lap before them and was incredibly fast on his outlap, and Hamilton rejoined side by side with him coming into turn 3. However, the Brit had the inside line, but Michael was not going to back down, as he retook the lead into turn 8. But the following lap, Hamilton used the straight line advantage of his Williams to full effect, retaking the lead into the wall of champions chicane. From there on, Michael maintained 2nd place to boost his championship lead to 9 points, but it was Hamilton who won in Canada once again for Williams, and getting revenge on Schumacher after their close battle in Italy the year before.

AUT:

Pole: S. Vettel - 1:08.643

Fastest Lap: S. Vettel - 1:11.475

Vettel got his first pole position for Ferrari, with his fellow German and title rival Michael Schumacher alongside him. Rosberg started 3rd after a tense qualifying session where the top 3 were covered by just a hundreth of a second. They both ad an equal start and were level into the first corner, but using Michael's ruthlessness against him, Vettel chopped off Schumacher and maintained the lead. The two were closely matched, but it was the Ferrari driver who came out on top, Vettel now only two points behind Schumacher. Nico slumped to fourth behind Lewis Hamilton, after the Brit outpaced him and managed the race better. He was still in the title hunt, but he needed results and fast if he wanted that ellusive first title.

GBR:

Pole: L. Hamilton - 1:32.188

Fastest Lap: M. Schumacher - 1:35.947

Just like in Canada, it was another Mercedes vs Williams duel, with Hamilton taking the honours in Qualifying at his home race from Schumacher and Bottas. Hamilton got away well and so did Bottas, overtaking Schumacher at the start to make it a Williams 1-2. The Williams stopped really early, lap 14 for Bottas and lap 15 for Hamilton. Bottas managed to leapfrog Hamilton using an undercut, and was setting consecutive fastest laps. However, the Williams' got stuck in traffic, which hindered their plan, and Schumacher ended up just 2 seconds behind Hamilton when he made his stop. On lap 22, Schumacher got past Hamilton at the Club corner and set off after Bottas, who was 12 seconds up the road and looking for a possible first victory. Schumacher reeled Bottas in, and nipped past him on the Hangar Straight just one lap before both teams scheduled their second stops, meaning it was a fight of the pit crews. After they both exited their box, they were side by side, and Bottas got the advantage due to having the inside line, meaning Schumacher had to do it again. The German swooped down the inside at turn 3, but Bottas got him back into the Club corner but comprimised his line into the following right handed hairpin. Schumacher passed him round the outside, and went on to win his second race of the season and extending his championship lead to 15 points, the largest it had been thus far.

HNG:

Pole: M. Schumacher - 1:22.471

Fastest Lap: F. Alonso - 1:24.663

Schumacher took a great pole position but didn't get the start he needed, handing the lead to his teammate. Alonso tried an audatious move into the second corner, but failed, falling behind the two Red Bull's and dropping to 5th. Then on lap 6, Ricciardo overtook Schumacher for 2nd and then Kvyat followed suit on lap 9. Rosberg seemed to have control of the race, until after his first pitstop. He tried overtaking Kvyat, who had not made his stop, but the Red Bull driver clipped his rear left wheel, causing Rosberg to get a puncture. Kvyat's front wing was relatively undamaged, and was just one lap away from making his stop anway, so any delays were minimal. This meant Ricciardo led the race, with Kvyat 2nd and Schumacher 3rd. However, a front wing failure for Hulkenberg brought out the safety car, which hindered Rosberg's startegy as he tried extending his stint and handn't made a stop, whilst others had. This meant he rejoined 11th, but made up some positions and finished 8th. Meanwhile, Schumacher's other title rival Vettel had an underwhelming race, finishing 6th. Ricciardo took his 3rd win of his career with Kvyat in 2nd, to make it the second Red Bull one-two of the year, whilst Schumacher finished 3rd, extending his championship lead to 22 points.

BLG:

Pole: M. Schumacher - 1:47.555

Fastest Lap: K. Raikkonen - 1:51.997

Schumacher took his 6th pole in 11 races, and was able to build up a healthy lead to Rosberg who qualified in second. Vettel trailed them behind, but the star of the race was Romain Grosjean, who started 10th but made his way up to fourth by the closing stages of the race. Miraculously, this became a podium place, as Vettel got a puncture, dropping him outside the points. He managed to recover to 9th, but it was a massive dent to his championship hopes, as Schumacher became the first driver to win 3 races in 2015.

ITA:

Pole: L. Hamilton - 1:23.414

Fastest Lap: M. Schumacher - 1:26.574

For the second time in a row, Lewis Hamilton got pole in Monza in what was another Mercedes vs Williams battle. However, Schumacher got the lead off the start and this team held the lead through the della Roggia. From there on, he commanded the race, taking his fourth win of the season whilst a DNF for Rosberg for all intents and purpouses put him out of the title race. Hamilton managed to finish second with Vettel finishing 3rd after an impressive qualifying and race saw him outperform the superior Williams of Bottas in both qualifying and the race to get his first podium since his win in Austria. However, Schumacher's 103rd win had allowed him to reach one hand on his 9th World Championship Trophy.

SNG:

Pole: D. Ricciardo - 1:43.668

Fastest Lap: K. Raikkonen - 1:50.001

Daniel Ricciardo got the second pole position of his career and Red Bull's first in 2015, as Daniil Kvyat made it an all Red Bull front row. However, it was Fernando Alonso who made the perfect getaway, leapfrogging both Kvyat and Ricciardo to take the lead into turn one. Kvyat used DRS on lap 3 to pass his teammate on Raffles Boulevard, and set after Alonso for the lead. He remained behind after the first stop, but closed the gap and performed the same manouever on Fernando to take the lead of the race. Behind, Ricciardo had dropped to 5th behind Schumacher and a frustrated Vettel, who got passed by his championship rival in the pitstops. However, the day belonged to Kvyat, who become the first Russian to win an F1 race. Alonso also managed to get his first podium on his return to McLaren.

JPN:

Pole: N. Rosberg - 1:49.916

Fastest Lap: M. Schumacher - 1:35.478

Rosberg took the pole in the rain, but Michael aggressivley sqeezed him off turn 2, giving him a lead he would not relinquish. He dominated the race, winning by almost 20 seconds in a crushing performace, his 9th title getting ever so closer. Vettel was left frustrated again, as a mistake into the hairpin cost him a podium finish to Daniel Ricciardo, who bravely moved down the inside. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen got his best result of the season with 7th.

RUS:

Pole: V. Bottas - 1:37.934

Fastest Lap: M. Schumacher - 1:41.004

Williams refound the pace they had lost after the summer break and Bottas took pole with Hamilton in 4th. Schumacher couldn't win the title today, but it could become an almost forgone conclusion if everything went right, which it did. Schumacher got the best start out of the front three, but couldn't quite get the best of Bottas in the rundown to turn 1. However, his pace was formidable, and when lap 3 came, he passed him using the DRS and took a lead he would once again never relinquish, taking his 105th win overall and 6th in the season, 4 more than anyone else. Bottas finished 4th with a crippled car, after Raikkonen samcked him on the inside coming into turn 4. Kimi was deemed at fault, and the damage + the insuing penalties dropped him to 7th. Vettel suffered a suspension failure, meaning that all Schumacher needed in the next race in the USA was to finish in the top 8.

CHAMPIONSHIP PERMUTATIONS:

Vettel and Rosberg must win to keep the championship alive no matter what happens to Schumacher.

Rosberg win: Schumacher must finish 10th or lower or he wins the championship.

Vettel win: Schumacher must finish 9th or lower or he wins the championship.

USA:

Pole: N. Rosberg - 1:35.781

Fastest Lap: K. Raikkonen - 1:40.658

Rosberg took the pole, but with Schumacher in 2nd all he had to do was keep out of trouble. Easier said than done in the wet. Vettel could only manage to qualify 5th behind the Mercedes, Hamilton and Alonso. Schumacher got the better getaway but didn't bother risking to challenge Rosberg as all he needed was 8th. Vettel had a poor start and dropped to 7th. Ricciardo was making up places rapidly. First he got Bottas, and then Alonso and Hamilton by lap 6, and was rapidly closing in on Schumacher before he hit the guardrail and retired on lap 11. This brought out the safety car, and a strategic error to leave Vettel out left him doomed once the safety car came in, as he eiter had to stay on inters or bite the bullet and take the wets. He chose the latter, and dropped to the very back of the field, meaning his championship chances were all but over now. Meanwhile, Rosberg was doing everything he needed to do, driving a calmed and controlled race, but Schumacher was doing the same. He lost 2nd to a charging Raikkonen and third to Button, who had made good progress through the field, but 9th would suffice as it is. In the closing stages of the race, he did battle with Max Verstappen, who was 26 years his junior, as the Dutchman made a fantastic move round the outside of turn 18 to get up into a sensational 4th. Rosberg won, but Schumacher finally clinched an unprecedented 9th World Title, 4 more than anyone else and equalling Sebastien Loeb as the most succesfull motorsports champion. After the race had finished, he announced that he was going to retire at the end of 2015.

MEX:

Pole: S. Vettel - 1:19.111

Fastest Lap: K. Raikkonen - 1:21.549

With the championship sealed, all eyes turned to who would finish second, the main contenders being Nico Rosberg and Sebastian Vettel, with Lewis Hamilton having a very slim shot as well. It was advantage Vettel, as he gained pole from Rosberg on Saturday, but the advantage was all for nothing as he spun and had a terminal accident on lap 11, all but ruining his chances at 2nd place in the championship. The race for the Grand Prix was still on though, and with better tyre wear, the McLaren of Alonso and the Red Bull of Kvyat reeled Rosberg in. Kvyat passed Nico at the first round of pitstops, whilst Alonso used DRS to pass him into turn 1 a few laps later. Now it was a two horse race between Kvyat and Alonso, and it was the Spaniard who came out on top after some scintillating laps to get the undercut on Kvyat on the second round of stops. From there he managed the race perfectly, winning by 3.1 seconds to take McLaren's first win in almost 3 years and Honda's first in over 9.

BRZ:

Pole: J. Button - 1:11.116

Fastest Lap: M. Schumacher - 1:15.011

The race was between McLaren and Red Bull as Kvyat, Alonso and Button fighting it out for pole, with the latter getting his second pole of the season. However, a poor start meant he slipped down to 5th behind Rosberg, who he passed at the Descido Do Lago to get back a position. Button then got past Schumacher to regain 3rd on lap 3 with DRS, and set off chasing Kvyat and Alonso. Alonso had gained a 12 second lead by the first pitstops, and was dominating the race, whilst Button had got within two seconds within Kvyat by the first stops. A fast pitstop by Red Bull gained Kvyat an extra second, but Button used the pace advantage of the McLaren to soar back past him and take second. There was no stopping Fernando though, who won the race by almost half a minute. Was this just a one time incident, or were McLaren the new team to beat now?

UAE:

Pole: M. Schumacher - 1:40.603

Fastest Lap: F. Alonso - 1:44.219

Mercedes locked out the front row, with Schumacher just pipping Rosberg to take his 80th and final pole of his career. However, Rosberg got him off the line and set off into the sunset. Now Michael had to worry about the McLaren's. As it turned out, in race trim, the Mercedes were no match for the McLaren's, as Alonso got by Schumacher on lap 5, and got Rosberg on lap 16 before he could even take his first stop, whilst Button got Schumacher in the pit stops and slipped by Rosberg on lap 32 on the second round of stops. Alonso took his 36th win, as Schumacher signed off his incredible career with a quiet drive to 4th. However, perhaps more importantly, McLaren signed off 2015 with three wins in a row. Could they solidify their claim as legitamate championship contenders in the season to follow?