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Winning is, undoubtedly, the best feeling in any sport. But when it comes to Formula 1, a contest made ethereal by speed and uncanny by the unpredictabilities that pan out given track temperatures, tyre wear, and inclement weather, winning serves a levitation of a sort.
Having said that, there may not be other sports that could challenge F1, what's called the pinnacle of motor-racing, given the physical risks involved.
But having said that, not every time does a driver win purely by virtue of sheer effort- isn't it?
In that regard, Formula 1 also follows a simple rule of life. One person's loss is another person's gain. The same can be said for drivers. And this year too, there wasn't a great deal of surprise given how at the back of few drivers' costly errors, the others either benefitted directly or went on to make solid gains in races.
Lewis Hamilton at Baku - Azerbaijan Grand Prix
The 2018 World Champion Lewis Hamilton is clearly among the best drivers of all time. But where the current grid stands, he is also among the fastest. With such a terrific record amplified by 71 wins, the second-most following Michael Schumacher's grand tally of 91, it won't be incorrect to suggest that Hamilton is ruling the contemporary structure of the sport by an iron fist.
He seems unstoppable to most and if one needed a proof, then probably hanging out with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel would provide an example.
In so doing, there were a few races where Hamilton did get lucky and therefore, at the back of fortune went on to win a race.
One such example was witnessed at the 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
At the restart of the race, toward the closing stages of the contest, Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas led the contest, followed by the two championship contenders, Ferrari's Vettel and Hamilton, who were being traced by the other Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen.
Having said that, as the safety car ran into its out-lap, Vettel, visibly trying to overtake the Mercedes, locked a front wheel as the lot in the front approached the sharp left-hander. As a result, Vettel would run wide seeing the two Mercedes run at the front. Resulting from this skirmish, even Raikkonen gained a place.
So far, so good, Hamilton still had his task cut out, with his teammate Bottas having the tail of his Mercedes just in front of his nose.
That is precisely when it would all change. Bottas would run over the debris lying on the track emanating from a previous collision. As a result of sustaining a puncture, he would retire while his teammate Hamilton would inherit the race. In the end, even his team made a hush confession on the radio as the five-time world champion crossed the line, "We had lady luck on our side today, Lewis," said Peter Bonnington, Hamilton's race engineer.
Sebastian Vettel at Silverstone - British Grand Prix
The 2018 British Grand Prix was won by Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari. Surely, it was a great win, both for the German as well as for his Italian stable.
But having said that, it might offer a bit of a debate to fans if one were to ask whether Vettel's win was always in the offing.
Having said that, what changed the complexion of the race was what happened right at the start inside maybe five seconds of the start of the race.
At Turn 2, Raikkonen, who started third faltered and erroneously contacted the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton.
As a result, Raikkonen's move on Hamilton, a clear racing incident, though caused by Kimi saw Hamilton spin off the track and drop down to the bottom of the grid.
What happened from that instance would be a race marked by a tremendous improvement demonstrated by Lewis Hamilton, who drove a heroic drive to finish second.
A P2 for Lewis especially at the end of what happened to him in the opening lap was a sentimental victory and a mark of a champion. But at all this time where Hamilton played catch up to his arch-rival Vettel, the German benefitted having inherited the race lead from Lewis, caught up in the skirmish triggered by Raikkonen.
This, therefore, leaves us to question- didn't Vettel get lucky in eloping with a win?
Lewis Hamilton at Sochi - Russian Grand Prix
The 2018 Russian Grand Prix wasn't the best possible race for Mercedes in totality even as Lewis Hamilton, now a deserving champion reigned in the end.
Having said that, a question is clearly in front of both Lewis fans as well as his detractors: was the Sochi triumph always in the books for him?
While it was his teammate, Valtteri Bottas who seemed to be running perfectly in control of the race, just the way he was the previous year, looking all set to finally clinch a race win, his fortunes would be changed, for good.
In the closing stages of the race with Vettel catching the Briton, then running in second, there emerged a message on Hamilton's teammate's radio, "Let Lewis through!"
And, then?
Well, that was that.
At the end of the Grand Prix where Bottas was all but assured of a win, he was told to let Lewis gain track position. His job, in the end, would be to keep Vettel at bay.
But having said that, Hamilton's stellar move over Vettel, just when Mercedes got undercut by Ferrari, cannot and should not be undermined. Wasn't that one of the best moments of the year?
Daniel Ricciardo - Monaco Grand Prix
Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo is among the most admired men on the track. He is, according to some, a 'race burglar', a coinage attributed to him out of his sheer excellence at grappling with tough situations and ultimately, making the most out of them.
Having said that, Ricciardo's overall season now stands in strange contrast to what, at one point in time resembled a run that would've ended on a high, given his incredible triumphs at China and Monaco.
There have been 8 DNF's for the Australian driver and thankfully for the 'honey badger' none of them occurred at the Principality of Monte Carlo.
Right at the start of the 2018 Monaco Grand Prix, Ricciardo, the pole-sitter at the track, got stuck in a technical snag in his car.
It appeared, given his interaction with his team that this wasn't going to be an easy race for him especially since it became clear that there was a power issue in his MGU-K.
Luckily for him, though, Ricciardo's car didn't deteriorate further and the fierce competitor was able to fight hard and keep Vettel, fast-catching his Red Bull, behind.
Kimi Raikkonen - US Grand Prix
Perhaps there won't be many people who dread it when Kimi Raikkonen wins a race, isn't it? And maybe, they don't because such a rare occasion, with all due respect, doesn't happen all that often.
Thankfully, akin to Halley's Comet, the Raikkonen win happened at the USA. But was the race-win always on the cards, given Hamilton's attacking form and Vettel who was all set to start in front of Kimi, had he not been awarded a grid penalty?
To be fair to Kimi, the Iceman did try everything in his ability to win at the Italian Grand Prix, where he not only shook his detractors' by first setting the fastest lap in the history of the sport during qualifying, and later by reclaiming the lead from Hamilton to emerge at the front at Monza in the early stages of the race.
That he was then passed again wouldn't really have ignited the faith of his backers for the US Grand Prix, another enthralling contest where the two once again battled, even as Kimi would better his Mercedes opponent.
But while the Iceman kept his cool and made most of his experience in bravely defending from arguably the most attacking driver on the grid, his tyres supporting his fight, would such a scenario have occurred had Vettel not been penalised that eventually compromised his race?. Also, Raikkonen benefitted from Mercedes' two-stop strategy.
One can debate that endlessly but not without congratulating the Finn who finally ended his draught.
