Korean Grand Prix gets lowest rating of season so far

2012 Korean Grand Prix

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The Korean Grand Prix received the lowest rating for a race so far in the 2012 season.

The race saw the first one-two finish for a team this year, Sebastian Vettel leading home Red Bull team mate Mark Webber ahead of Fernando Alonso.

With an average rating of just 5.157 out of ten from F1 Fanatic readers, the Korean Grand Prix was not well-received by readers.

Not the best race of the year. No battle for the lead, not many non-DRS passes, Hamilton and Raikkonen practically out of the fight for the drivers’ championship and team orders at Ferrari.
Girts

Not everyone was critical of what they saw:

I actually really enjoyed this race, some good fights, some close racing and a reasonable amount of
overtaking. Wasn’t action packed but far from being totally dull.
StefMeister

The turf on turn 13 was quite a talking point:

Astroturf was shredding like an office carpet, that’s just unacceptable.
Antonia Nartea

The turf at the exit of turn 13 was rather ridiculous. They need to sort that out.
Max Jacobson

Some believed Rosberg’s car took too long to remove from the circuit:

The race was really let down by the awkward placement of Rosberg’s Mercedes and the extended yellow flag period.
Prisoner Monkeys

However, others enjoyed some racing in the midfield:

The only overtaking zone on the circuit was yellow flagged and no one could overtake. That was a disadvantage to those cars with speed.
Tifoso 1989

Most agreed the best racing could be seen with the drivers fighting for the final points positions:

There were some interesting battles up and down the midfield. Raikkonen and Hamilton, and of course the performance of Williams, Toro Rosso and Force India.
Bob

There were a lot of interesting battles. Hulkenberg defending from Grosjean, the two Toro Rossos climbing up and Hamilton going down.
Yobo01

Dizzy believed early season races have set an unfairly high precedent for the remaining events:

The crazy races earlier on where tyres and DRS where creating 80-plus passes (most of which were boringly easy to watch) have created unfair expectations of all races.
Dizzy

As Chris noted, there was little to commend about the latest round of the world championship:

The racing was mediocre, the track was filthy, the Astroturf was a joke and the race organisers still don’t have a clue. I still don’t understand why this race is on the calendar.
Chris

Share your view on the races so far in the comments.

2012 Korean Grand Prix

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    40 comments on “Korean Grand Prix gets lowest rating of season so far”

    1. Interesting, that if you look at the numbers, it shows a relatively steadiliy declinging line from the highly rated first race to the last race!

      Does it mean the races get worse, or did we get used to action at the start of the year and now miss it?

      1. If you’re looking at the left column, they are in order of rating..

        1. @alfie I think @bascb is noting that the first races of the season have been better-received than recent ones.
          This could be due to the fact that midfield teams who had several exploits at the start of the season (Sauber in Malaysia, Williams in Spain) have been reached and overtaken in terms of performance by the usual top three/four. At the start of the season apart from McLaren every team was fighting very closely with the others, and this produced more action and more overtakes. Now the performance difference between each team has grown and solidified, with the positions being more and more predictable.

          1. Also do not forget that this is a UK based website and while many memebers are from abroad most will not be and since McLaren looked like they could get the double this year people were hopeful and enjoyed it. With the resurgence of Vettel and RBR I think many fans died a little inside if if only because they had enough of them. I’m not saying that the last few races weren’t less exciting than the ones at the beginning but its kind of the truth. Also at the beginning of this season with the crazy discrepancies in performance from one venue to the next the races were a leap into the unknown where races could be anybodies while over the course of such a long season it is inevitable that teams with larger budgets and better technical staff will reign supreme.

            1. Also do not forget that this is a UK based website and while many memebers are from abroad most will not be and since McLaren looked like they could get the double this year people were hopeful and enjoyed it

              brny666 – this is not true, its nonsense.

              First of all, visitors are about a 3rd from the UK, not more. And there is nothing pointing to even UK voters preferring McLaren over the rest of the teams.
              Sure, it was good that we are not seeing Red Bull / Vettel run away with it this year as easily as he did last year, that might have been a factor. But in all the excitement of the first races, it was McLaren offering mostly frustration to its fans, while Alonso was the driver who made hay (the same Alonso who arguably got a lot of hate from many UK viewers in the past)

      2. I think since the bigger teams have got a better handle on development as the season has gone on it’s started to get less exciting for me. There have been some exceptions, but in general things have started becoming more predictable.

        I know some people love seeing “the best drivers in the best cars, winning”. But, I’m not a believer in there being huge differences in talent between the drivers. There are tiny, tiny differences and the majority comes down to the car and getting the setup right for each track. When that happened we had surprises like Rosberg in China or Perez in Malaysia, Maldonado in Spain. Kobayashi in Spa and Suzuka. And of course who can forget all those “exciting” (lol) moments Grosjean was involved in :D.

        1. I know some people love seeing “the best drivers in the best cars, winning”.

          I personally prefer seeing great drivers in, how do I put it frankly, not so great cars. In my view, the ability to compensate, to make up for the car’s shortcomings, is what makes a great driver. Whether it’s through sheer driving ability, or tactical expertise, making a good car look great is something only the best can do.

          My two cents, but having the best drivers, in the best cars, seems to be leading to Schumacher-like dominance. I doubt many here would want to see that again.

          1. My two cents, but having the best drivers, in the best cars, seems to be leading to Schumacher-like dominance. I doubt many here would want to see that again.

            That sort of thing is an inevitability of F1 every now & again & has been since day 1 of the championship.

            When you have everyone designing there own cars your always going to get one team coming up with something better than the rest & since the best drivers will always end up in the best teams your going to get seasons & even era’s of dominance.

            Only way to prevent that is to simply make F1 a spec series, However thats not what F1 is about & not what most (including myself) wants to see.

            1. Remember me some seasons where some teams were so dominant they spoke about added weight in function of their championship point to level the field.

              Could be a way to have close battle everytime with everyone involved (at least after some races) but maybe too artificial.

    2. Honest question, what is the reasoning behind the races that rank in the bottom 7? 6 of those were won by RBR (all their wins this year). Was it a boring race, or do voters not like a RBR winning?

      1. As a Ferrari fan it’s pretty normal that I don’t like it when Red Bull win.
        However regardless of the winner I base my vote on the amount of action that happens on the track, especially at the front where it counts more. I just so happens when Red Bull win it usually involves them getting a front row lock out, dominating the race and Vettel finishing 30 seconds in front of Webber who finishes a further 10 in front of Alonso/Hamilton/Button.
        Obviously there are exceptions, like Monza 2011 but personally I don’t find most of their wins exciting in the slightest. Korea was a great example of this where I found myself wanting the gouge my own eyeballs out with a whisk because of the lack of on track action.
        If Vettel had dominated but then say there was an epic battle for 2nd between Webber and Alonso I would have voted higher but because of the lack of on track action that just so happens when Red Bull win.

        1. I think you may be onto something here. It’s ironic that a company that prides itself on extreme sports wins in the most boring way possible (which is probably the best way to win for them, but not for the viewers!). I seem to remember Monaco 2011 being quite entertaining however up until the red flag.

        2. Totally agreed.

      2. @tripperhead I don’t think the fans vote on the basis of who wins but how he wins. That said Red Bull wins are rated low probably as @davef1 and @john-h have said that they win so commandingly that we invariably find those races boring. I generally find that voter preferences only seem to factor in when voting for the Driver of the Weekend, where I find Vettel loses out quite often maybe because his wins are so dominating.

        1. However, I would hardly call Bahrain, Britain or Monaco commanding, since there were others that were close (Singapore to an extent as well).

    3. I remember in the Korea rating post a lot put there low ratings down to ‘No overtaking’, Yet according to the clip the apex overtaking stats there weer 33 on-track overtakes in Korea.

      Interestingly thats just over double the amount of passing that was seen in Hungary (16 passes) yet Hungary got a marginally higher rating. Its also more overtaking than was seen in Monaco (12 passes) yet that too got a higher rating.

      Also interesting how there was actually a lot more close racing in Korea & a lot more exciting/intense racing battles that lasted a while when compared to races which got significantly higher votes.

    4. Fans often go on about wanting more exciting racing yet tend to vote down the races which actually feature genuinely exciting, close racing.
      Its now the drs-fest’s which feature tons of boring to watch, unexciting drive-by drs passes & very little real exciting racing which tend to get the highest ratings.

      Just further proof that the actual quality of racing is no longer important, Goodbye F1, Hello Nascar!

    5. Red Bull’s ability to dominate races clearly evident yet again! I agree with the majority, even as a Vettel fan I admit that when he is cruising off into the distance it does rather ruin the front-running action as nobody can challenge for the lead.

      1. I agree that, while Vettel is a great driver and 2-time WDC, when he disappears up the road after turn 1 on the first lap, never to be challenged again…yawn/grrr…

    6. Bob (@bobthevulcan)
      23rd October 2012, 17:10

      Can’t say I didn’t see this coming. However, Dizzy raises a good point – were we spoiled by the first few rather brilliant races of the season? Maybe.

      Slightly off tangent, I just reviewed some footage from the race. Did anyone else notice the shroud of fog/smog/smoke slowly descending on the circuit as the race went on? Compare shots of the starting grid, then the pit straight by the end of the race. Notice how it got foggier, and visibility got poorer? Anyone know of the reason? ESPN/Star commentators mentioned the nearby shipyards, so could it be factory exhaust from thereabouts?

      Or is it just me?

    7. Surprised this race got such a low rating & i seriously enjoyed it.

      There was plenty of overtaking, a lot of very close & exciting racing through the field, some good fighting for position & even in cases where a pass was not completed there was some good passing attempts which were exciting to watch.

      The most exciting/interesting race ever it wasn’t, However I fail to see how anyone could label it dull or boring?

      1. Bob (@bobthevulcan)
        23rd October 2012, 17:33

        As has been suggested by other commentators, people don’t find Red Bull domination very exciting. There wasn’t a battle for the lead after the first corner, and if memory serves me right, most of the attempted passes seemed to be within the DRS zone.

        That being said, people can and will have wildly differing opinions on a race. Virtually everyone has different requirements as to what constitutes an “entertaining” grand prix – seeing their favorite driver do well, seeing a dogfight for the lead, and so on. You’ll find opinions of every kind.

        Glad you enjoyed the race, but for me, I can’t really say the same.

        1. people don’t find Red Bull domination very exciting. There wasn’t a battle for the lead after the first corner

          The problem with that is that a race is about more than just the guysat the front.

          Im a long time fan & when im looking at giving a race a rating or giving an opinion on how good or bad a race was I look at the entire race, The entire field & every pass/battle that took place which I was able to see.

          If all your doing is focusing on the very front then your not watching the race, Your just watching the lead.

          1. Agree.

            I’ve been watching F1 since the 60s, I’ve seen plenty of cars/drivers dominate races/seasons & i’ve never had any problem with it.

            One driver grabs pole or front row, takes the lead at the start & runs off & wins easily, I’ve no problem with that & it doesn’t harm my enjoyment of the race.

            If you want constant action, close racing at the front at all times etc… then go watch nascar or something & leave F1 to those who truly understand both it & racing!

            1. Bob (@bobthevulcan)
              24th October 2012, 2:57

              Well, the poll results seem to reflect how most voters weren’t able to gleam as much entertainment from the race as you did. As I said, everyone has differing views as to what makes a good race.

          2. Bob (@bobthevulcan)
            24th October 2012, 3:05

            Perhaps you misunderstood my statement. I was referring to the other commentators in this comment section, particularly those above discussing how races where Red Bull dominated received low scores.

    8. If only Webber had ended the first lap still in 1st place… could have been an amazing battle between him and (the faster) Vettel

    9. I think the safety car should’ve been deployed to remove rosberg’s car. I think Vettel got abit of an unfair advantage as the DRS zone was disabled for 600 laps (as webber said) and that allowed vettel to pull away which is what made the race boring. Of course it’s easier to say all this now with hindsight but I was abit disappointed by this race because of the RBR dominance reminiscent of 2011. There was quite abit of close racing but not many could make a pass stick due to the track.

      1. + 1 Poor race management ruined the event – as in Singapore

      2. Six-hundred laps, “as Webber said”… look, if Webber was going to catch and pass Vettel, he would have been faster than him. He had the majority of the race to get within DRS range, and he failed. Nothing unfair at all.

    10. Overall the racing has been good this year, and the average race of this year is much much better than 2, 3 or more years ago. But there hasn’t really been a fantastic, classic race yet – we had that in the previous seasons, but none this year. Just consistently pretty good races.

    11. I remember giving this my lowest rating, a 5. I just don’t remember much happening to be honest and the Rosberg thing was just so bizarre. Robbed us of a bit of drama at the beginning that could have fed down the rest of the race.

    12. I think the Pirelli’s performance becomes predictable towards the end of the season. As we saw last year, two stop strategies were the norm towards the end. Same seems to be happening now.

      And because the tyre performance is ceasing to be a factor, it is the car performance that comes to the fore. Red Bull once again have the edge.

    13. Korea rated lower than Monaco? Wow! We must have gotten to a pretty bad point when brand new track receives a lower rating than than a street circuit where it is impossible to overtake like Monaco? You would be able to say that if it was 2011 but this year’s Monaco GP was quite boring but Korea was even worse.

    14. I can’t believe the rating Monaco got.

    15. Funny to see that out of the bottom 8 rated races, 7 of those were won by a Red Bull driver. I guess no one wants to see a Ferrari-like domination again.

      1. sorry 6 out of 7 at the bottom, oops

    16. Well the dull race is a product of Mr Tilke, we have a few more of his tracks to come next zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

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