Hamilton puts Britain back on top
29 June 2010
Lewis Hamilton's recent purple patch has propelled Great Britain back to the top of the Castrol Nations Rankings after a six-week absence.
The McLaren driver's two wins and a second place from the last three grands prix have been instrumental in Britain's surge back to the top, as it dispossessed Australia of the number one position this week.
On the face of it, Britain should never have lost the top spot. It is, after all, the only nation to have three drivers in the Castrol Rankings top 10, in the shape of Hamilton, Jenson Button and Dario Franchitti.
Starting the year top of the Castrol Nations Rankings thanks to the F1 and IndyCar crowns achieved by Button and Franchitti in 2009, its year, however strong to begin with, could not match that of Australia.
Mark Webber's grand prix wins for Red Bull in Spain and Monaco, coupled with a strong start to the IndyCar season for Penske driver Ryan Briscoe, brought Australia to the top of the tree in May.
Since Monaco though, things have taken a turn. Hamilton's back-to-back grand prix wins in Turkey and Canada, followed by his second place at Valencia last weekend, have launched him up from the edge of the top 10 to second in the Castrol Rankings.
Button too, has recaptured some of the form that led him to last year's world title. Three podiums in a row has brought him back up to seventh (he had been as low as ninth) and has re-established him as Britain's second highest-ranked driver ahead of Indianapolis 500 winner Franchitti.
While results have been great for Britain, the same can not be said for Australia during the same period. Webber's exit from the European Grand Prix last weekend dropped him behind Button to third overall and was instrumental in his country losing the top spot. Briscoe (8), despite winning the IndyCar race at Texas two weeks ago, has not yet matched his form of 2009.
Germany too, has failed to maintain its challenge, despite Sebastian Vettel holding the number one spot in the drivers' rankings for the past 13 weeks.
Nico Rosberg needs Mercedes to improve its car's pace - and quickly - if he is to climb up from his 15th place. If it does, then Germany's challenge will surely resume.
The Castrol Rankings is based on drivers' measurable performance over the last 12 months, including everything from their grid position to fastest laps. For further information on how the Castrol Rankings scores are calculated, click here.
