After watching Qualifying on Saturday, I just knew that race day would be as unpredictable and controversial. 

I was right. A Shanghai thriller they’re calling it. 

I’d like to congratulate Nico Rosberg for his maiden Formula 1 Grand Prix victory! He makes history giving Mercedes its first win since 1955. Well deserved indeed! Germany produces phenomenal drivers! Congratulations to the Mercedes team as well for a job well done! The promise that the car has been showing before the start of the season and in previous Qs has finally reaped a win! 

If you ask me, if the incident in the pits didn’t happen with Michael Schumacher, Mercedes would’ve gotten the 1-2. I’m so desperate for Schumi to head to the podium on his post-retirement career but, these things happen. 

Mclaren is still definitely the team to beat with Button and Hamilton (despite a 5 position penalty) taking 2nd and 3rd - both having to battle with the Red Bulls in the final laps. Which leads me to, WHAT IS UP WITH RED BULL?! When Vettel failed to make Q3 on Saturday I was totally flabbergasted! Although, it was a decent result having started from P11 and Webber moving up a couple spots as well despite a car flop (literally), they have got to do something. I want Seb to get a 3peat! 

As usual, here are my highlights:

1. Nico with a fantastic start, you could see him already separating from the pack in the first few seconds of the race.
2. Vettel falls to P14. Half of the cars are on medium tires, the other half on soft.
3. Kimi Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton are at it, keeping it tight in the pits. The no overtaking rule kept Kimi at Lewis’ behind.
4. A SLOPPY PITSTOP forces Michael Schumacher to retire from the race. He experiences a lose right front tire that brought him down 2 spots on the grid and eventually to his retirement. On the replay it was seen that the tire had not been locked in (cue pitstop dude waving his hand and pounding the ground after). Miscommunication has a very heavy price.
5. Most of the action took place in the middle of the grid. Webber and Hamilton ganging up on Massa. His Ferrari has yet to produce results.
6. All the overtaking causes a mix up in the order. A beautiful mess indeed.
7. Action moves up to the front as Button pressures Vettel. But Seb eventually loses his place as he heads into the pits.
8. Webber going WIDE on a turn and the car bounces back onto the track. He got lucky!
9. Jenson Button gets stalled in the pits due to a complication with one of the jacks. 
10. ROS - RAI - VET. Tire degradation becomes an issue.
11. Tires bump between Maldonaldo and Grosjean. Grosjean comes out with a damaged front wing. 
12. Vettel’s move to overtake Kimi caused a domino effect drowning Kimi further down the grid to 12th place.
13. Button passes Vettel in the final laps.
14. Hamilton pressures Vettel from behind and succeeds with the help of the DRS which Vettel did not use. 
15. Red Bull teammates Webber and Vettel go against each other, Webber takes 4th from Seb.

3 Mercedes powered cars take the podium: Rosberg with his first F1 win followed by Jenson and Lewis.

It was nice seeing Nico extremely happy! He joins his father who holds 5 GP titles in the father-son F1 legacy. Mercedes had great strategy and guided Nico brilliantly throughout the race. I also found the conversation between Nico, Jenson and Lewis before heading onto the podium pretty funny, the whole Nico kept on asking who was behind him coz it kept on changing. :))

My worry for Red Bull has gotten worse. I’m starting to sweat a little but I still have faith that Sebastian will win soon. I BELIEVE.

Massa underperforming has become a recurring issue and I am nervous for him as well. The car has not helped him at all. Massa is such a fantastic driver, I hope Ferrari gets his car sorted out soon. 

The next race takes place in Bahrain. If you’ve been reading up, the Bahrain GP was “this close” to not happening. But the FIA has assured teams that the route and area for the GP is safe and the race will still happen. 

The Bahrain Grand Prix will be on April 22, 2012, Sunday at 8pm.

Side Notes:

Grosjean FINALLY finishes the a grand prix. 

Oh, and if you’re a Red Bull fan and an iPhone user, download Red Bull Kart Fighter! It’s such a fun game! Numerous countries with different difficulty circuits to get your Formula 1 fix on the go! I’ll definitely be on it until next weekend! :))

(All images © Sutton Images, via formula1.com)