It’s been a jam-packed year of action across the world of motorsport, from Formula 1 to MotoGP, IndyCar to Formula E, and our team of writers have been tracking every moment. We assembled the Motorsport Week crew to look back at the 2019 season.
The panel:
Ryan Wood (RW): Editor
Phillip Horton (PH): Grand Prix Editor
Steve Camp (SC): IndyCar/F1 Correspondent
Chris Soulsby (CS): Formula E Editor
Kyle Francis (KF): MotoGP Editor
Davey Euwema (DE): Sportscar Editor
What was the best race?
RW: Formula 1’s German Grand Prix. There were quite a few contenders across several series for ‘best race’ as IndyCar and MotoGP all enjoyed some absolute crackers, but I can’t look past the absolutely bonkers German Grand Prix. Wet races don’t seem to be as frequent as they once were, added to that a slightly mixed up grid, the highlights of which were Kimi Raikkonen in fifth, Charles Leclerc down in 10th and Sebastian Vettel starting at the back. Vettel stormed up the order to finish second with Max Verstappen taking Honda’s second win since returning to the sport as an engine supplier. Daniil Kvyat shocked with a podium for Toro Rosso. But that doesn’t tell the full story and what it could have been. Leclerc, Nico Hulkenberg, Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas all crashed. Verstappen spun. There were some great scraps and whilst it might not be a great race in the traditional sense, it provided entertainment from start to finish.
PH: Formula 1’s German Grand Prix. Britain featured sensational racing, the finale in Brazil was brilliantly bonkers, but for pure madness – and some decent wheel-to-wheel action – then Germany just about edges it. We hoped for some action but the constantly changing weather led to an enthralling grand prix from start to finish. Mercedes’ race unravelled in shocking fashion, including that pit stop, Sebastian Vettel rose from last to second, while a dozen drivers could have staked a claim to a podium result. Can we have a post-heatwave crazy race at Hockenheim every year please?
SC: IndyCar’s Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio. While I certainly enjoyed the chaos which ensued in the Formula 1 German Grand Prix, the IndyCar race at Mid-Ohio was an absolute thriller. Rookie Felix Rosenqvist went on an ambitious three-stop strategy and so nearly pulled it off, eventually losing out to Chip Ganassi Racing team-mate Scott Dixon by just 0.09s at the finish line. Other drivers raced hard, banged wheels and even championship leader Josef Newgarden made a mistake on the final lap to close up the title battle.
CS: Formula E’s Mexico City E-Prix. Picking the best race of 2019 is a difficult prospect and an all-round challenge. In most series over the past 12 months we saw spectacular wheel-to-wheel action, with drama partnering with excitement to create a melting pot of unpredictability. While the first half of the Formula 1 season was perhaps at its least memorable, Formula E found the right racing recipe. The German and Brazilian Grands Prix were unquestionably brilliant but the Mexico City E-Prix? That duel between Lucas di Grassi and Pascal Wehrlein created a race to remember.
KF: MotoGP’s British Grand Prix. My favourite race of 2019 has to be the gripping British MotoGP contest, where Alex Rins battled the ever-relentless Marc Marquez for victory. The duo swapped places several times across the thrilling encounter, including a brave around-the-outside attempt from the Suzuki man at Copse. We were then treated to an incredible climax, with Rins diving back underneath the Honda to snatch victory at the final corner by a slender 0.013. For these reasons this incredible race was the one I most enjoyed this year, MotoGP proving once again that it provides some of the consistently best racing in all of motorsport.
DE: Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. WEC had plenty of good races this year, but when forced to choose, the nod goes for the Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. Not only was it your humble correspondent’s first live WEC race, it was unbelievable in its sheer craziness, and that was entirely down to the weather. Spa has a reputation for kicking up some unusual conditions, but to see it go from a snowy blizzard to a bright blue sky within half an hour is something I will not soon forget. It forced the teams to think on their feet and also provided some spectacular racing, especially in GTE Pro, which was fantastic all year.
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What was your favourite moment?
RW: Gasly’s podium redemption. Again, this was a tough choice. I was really pleased to see Ott Tanak break the reign of the Sebastiens in the WRC, but for what he was put through in 2019, my heart is with Pierre Gasly. Watching the Frenchman, who was promoted then demoted by Red Bull, take a well-earned podium finish in Brazil gave me that warm feeling inside. His radio message alone would rank amongst my favourite moments of the year. The race was capped off with a podium for McLaren’s Carlos Sainz for a truly feel-good race result.
PH: Leclerc’s Monza win. This was a year with a drab title fight (or, rather, a one-man procession) saved by some brilliant moments. The Ferrari scrap in Bahrain. A tense chess game in Monaco. The whole shenanigans, board-swapping, and post-race fallout, in Canada. Max vs Charles in Austria. And Britain. Germany. Max vs Lewis in Hungary. Ferrari’s fall-out in Singapore and Russia. Brazil. But one stands out. Witnessing Leclerc’s Italian GP win, and the passionate Monza podium, was one of those spine-tingling memories, particularly after a deeply emotional week for everyone involved in motorsport. It was a much-needed reminder of why we do it, why we love it, and why it matters.
SC: Leclerc’s Monza win. Having grown up during Michael Schumacher’s most dominant years in F1, the idea of Ferrari winning never left me fully satisfied. The past decade has seen the team fall back and it has struggled to be such a force again. Watching Leclerc defend his pole position amid the sheer onslaught of both Mercedes drivers throwing everything they could at the Monegasque driver was tense. Hearing his emotions over the radio in being the first Ferrari driver since Fernando Alonso in 2010 to score a win in Monza, while still grieving for his fallen friend Anthoine Hubert, was a joy.
CS: The Mexico City E-Prix finale. The Mexico City E-Prix has already been my pick for the best race of 2019 and it seems only natural for my favourite moment of the season to come from this race as well. As the 45-minute + 1 lap affair came down to the wire, one titanic battle for the lead emerged between Lucas di Grassi and Pascal Wehrlein. Wehrlein – running out of usable energy only meters from the chequered flag – slowed, allowing di Grassi to take a spectacular sideways victory by only 0.210s.
KF: Rins pips Marquez (again). Leading on from my favourite race, I simply have to give my best moment to Rins’ last-corner pass to win the British MotoGP race at Silverstone! The Spaniard set up Marquez’s Honda perfectly, dummying the eventual World Champion into carrying just a smidge too much speed into Woodcote, allowing him to square off the corner and fire his GSX-RR into the now-unoccupied space on the inside. The Suzuki was only too happy to oblige, narrowly edging the RC213-V to take the chequered flag just 0.013 clear. Simply awesome.
DE: Le Mans finale. The culmination of the 2018/19 Super Season at the 24 Hours of Le Mans is easily the top moment of the year. The biggest race on the planet is always something special, but when adding world title deciders in each of the four classes to the mix, you create something truly amazing. Although the finish of the race might not have been what some had hoped for, you can’t deny some of the outbursts of emotion as lifelong dreams were realised. It was also the end of an era in a way, as Ford and BMW both said goodbye, bringing to an end one of the great times of international sportscar racing.
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What was the biggest surprise?
RW: Williams’ slump. I was surprised by just how bad things were at Williams during the 2019 season. The car missed its shakedown, then it missed a massive chunk of testing. That’d would have been forgivable if it were at least quick, but it definitely wasn’t. A pleasant, but at the same time disappointing surprise, was George Russell’s form compared to Robert Kubica. The rookie outclassed the Pole at almost every round, taking a qualifying whitewash 21-0, which is a massive achievement. The fact Kubica made a comeback given what he’s been through is astonishing in its own right, but it’ll always be viewed as a disappointing campaign for a very talented driver.
PH: McLaren’s revival. Lewis Hamilton taking a title is not a surprise, nor was the ease with which Charles Leclerc slipped into red given his past record. Overall, in a year with not many standout surprises, McLaren’s gains were truly welcome. The team was at its lowest ebb in 2018 and its humiliation was fully complete. It cooked itself up a humble pie and triggered a turnaround that brought back the feel-good factor. In Andreas Seidl it has a forward-thinking and driven leader and in Carlos Sainz Jr. and Lando Norris two of the next gen racers whose personalities flourished.
SC: Santino Ferrucci. He was vilified during 2018 after his questionable antics at the Formula 2 event at Silverstone, after which he was banned, departing the series. Ferrucci joined IndyCar for 2019 with Dale Coyne Racing and he quickly made an impression and improved continuously throughout the season. He narrowly missed out on the podium on a few occasions, gathering three fourth-place finishes in his rookie campaign. His brave manoeuvre to avoid getting caught in the pile-up during the Indy 500 is still something to be admired as he buried the throttle and skipped across the inside grass and even made up places in the process!
CS: Mercedes’ FE debut pace. Mercedes EQ is without a doubt the biggest surprise of 2019. Alongside Porsche, the German marque – building upon its unrivalled success in Formula 1 – entered Formula E for Season 6 to expand its motor racing portfolio. Countering the motor racing pedigree that is synonymous with Mercedes-Benz, Formula E is acclaimed as a tricky championship to contest. Nevertheless, the Silver Arrows stamped their presence at the first available opportunity, taking a pair of podiums in Diriyah: a shock result that no one predicted.
KF: Tanak’s Hyundai switch. My biggest surprise of 2019 comes from the world of rallying, in particular newly-crowned world champion Ott Tanak’s shock move to Hyundai from Toyota for next year. Tanak built on the promise shown by the Yaris WRC last year – only losing the title through reliability troubles – and marched to his maiden WRC crown with a round to spare, but announced he would depart Toyota and join their Korean rivals for next season. There were whispers of the Estonian being unhappy with the Tommi Makinen-run squad, but I didn’t believe he would leave the ever-improving Yaris package.
DE: Team WRT. Belgian outfit Team WRT, well known for its endeavours in international GT racing, embarked on its maiden DTM campaign this year, signing the young duo of Jonathan Aberdein and Pietro Fittipaldi to head a two-car campaign with the Audi RS5 DTM. This being its first season, the team would be forgiven for taking it slow, but it proved it wasn’t here to just drive alongside in the rear of the field, it was here to impress. Aberdein in particular had a stellar rookie season, with a number of strong qualifying performances and great races, most notably at the Nürburgring. The team is back on the grid for next season, signing IndyCar refugee Ed Jones and F3 points scorer Fabio Scherer. Now with a year’s worth of experience under its belt, here’s hoping it can do even better.
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What was the biggest disappointment?
RW: Ferrari. The team promised so much in pre-season testing that it headed into the opening race as favourites. Ferrari even held the belief that it had a half second per lap advantage over its rivals. But that all came crashing down as Mercedes dominated in Australia and then it dawned on everyone that we’d be seeing a repeat of the previous five seasons where everyone else is playing catch the Silver Arrows. Let’s hope 2020 is different.
PH: Williams. Ferrari’s tendency to self-destruct, Red Bull-spec Pierre Gasly, Renault squandering Daniel Ricciardo’s talents, Alfa Romeo dropping off the pace, Williams (and in particular Robert Kubica), the French Grand Prix, the silly scenes of Q3 in Monza, the budget cap being brought in after the overhauled regs got signed off and not before, track limits and dubious penalties. There were a lot of frustrations and down sides to the season. But out of that crop it has to be Williams. We feared they’d be last. But not last by that much.
SC: Williams. To witness the drastic decline of one of F1’s most successful teams in Williams has been hard to stomach. Growing up and watching them at their heights with Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill and Jacques VIlleneuve all claiming titles for the team in the 1990s was of great joy given its continued independent status. Watching this fallen titan of F1 languish at the back of field and by some margin to boot is an extremely difficult task. The only way is up for them and it can’t come too quickly.
CS: NIO. Of the Formula E grid NIO was without a doubt the biggest disappointment of 2019. The Chinese squad’s entrance into Season 5 was one of glamour and grandeur, with a car unveiling that only heightened expectations after an ever-improving 2017/18 campaign. The result? A disappointing and lacklustre campaign that produced only six points. As a customer team of GEOX Dragon for Season 6 and with increased investment, a blue sky may be coming for this Chinese start-up team.
KF: Jorge Lorenzo. My biggest disappointment has to be Jorge Lorenzo’s awful MotoGP swansong with the factory Honda team. The three-time premier class champion moved to Honda after being let go by Ducati, combining with Marc Marquez to create a ‘dream team’ of sorts. The dream quickly turned into a nightmare cocktail made up of a severe lack of speed and confidence with the RC213-V machine, and topped off with a frightening Assen crash that broke his back and polished off any chance of him remaining in top-flight motorcycle racing for good. It’s a crying shame that a rider as talented as Lorenzo should sign off this way.
DE: LMP1’s struggles. While GTE Pro continues to shine, the exact opposite can be said of the championship’s top class and the further downwards trajectory of LMP1 has to be the biggest disappointment of the year. With SMP Racing, Dragonspeed and ByKolles pulling out after Le Mans, and Rebellion scaling down its involvement, WEC continues to try and find a way to create better racing in the top class, with Rebellion and Ginetta trying their hardest to form opposition to the all-conquering giant that is Toyota Gazoo Racing. And while on paper it worked, with two pole position and a victory for Rebellion at the time of writing, the championship’s dynamic feels unnatural and forced, with the hybrid Toyotas being pegged back to increasingly extreme lengths.
What’s your main hope for 2020?
RW: The WEC Hypercar. Whilst I’d like to see closer competition in F1, I think what I’m most intrigued about is the upcoming World Endurance Championship hypercar regulations. The series, particularly the LMP1 field, has become somewhat irrelevant with the reduction in manufacturer teams as Toyota dominates its privateer rivals. I really hope the hypercar rules do the series justice and that manufacturers jump onboard as intended. Only a handful have committed, so here’s hoping a couple more sign up for what could be a terrific rebirth for WEC.
PH: Faster decisions. Aside from the usual hope of safe racing and fantastic battles, I’d say the ability for stewards to come to quicker decisions on crucial matters is important for Formula 1. In Canada, Austria, Italy and Mexico we had to wait a few hours for either the result of qualifying or the race to be ratified by stewards, which is no fun for anyone involved, particularly fans who depart or switch off the TV without being assured of the result. There are systems in place that the FIA and its stewards have to adhere to but given the vast range of technology available and the fast-moving pace of modern life this can’t go on.
SC: A fairer Concorde Agreement. With the 2021 technical overhaul fully signed off, continued work on the contractual agreement which binds the teams to the sport is now the primary focus of the top brass. For too long the balance of power has been continually growing wider apart and the opportunity to correct this has arrived. A fairer share of the prize money and ensuring teams cannot have too much say in how the sport is run are key factors which have to be addressed. If F1 CEO Chase Carey can lay down the law and ensure the series has a safe and secure future with parity amongst its competitors I would certainly be happy, as I’m sure would be many fans.
CS: More of the same! I hold only one hope for 2020 and that is simply more of the same. Season 5 of Formula E was full of thrills, spills but most importantly, unpredictability. When the series returns to London for its double-header finale at the new ExCeL venue, eight drivers fighting for the title would once again be great for the series.
KF: Marquez can be challenged. My wish heading into 2020 is for someone – most likely to come in the form of Fabio Quartararo – to consistently challenge Marc Marquez for the championship. While he has faced stern opposition from the likes of Andrea Dovizioso, Alex Rins and Quartararo across the year none have been able to fight him week-in week-out, allowing the Honda man to cruise to his sixth premier class title in seven years. We’ve been treated to some cracking MotoGP encounters this year, but wouldn’t it be great if these races could potentially decide a title?
DE: With 2020 being the final year for LMP1, the hope is that the new and long awaited Le Mans Hypercar category can bring true competition back to the top class of the WEC. With Aston Martin, Toyota and Peugeot already on board, the future is looking bright, although not entirely finished as the FIA and ACO continue to work out the kinks ahead of the class’ September Silverstone debut. Here’s hoping Hypercar knocks it out of the park and creates something truly special to bring the lost interest back to the WEC. IMSA and DTM have meanwhile had strong years, with consistently great racing across both series. While both championships have some kinks to work out, they have the base product ready to deliver more brilliant racing in 2020.
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