The 2012 F1 season was an unpredictable one, with the Pirelli tyres mixing things up. Each circuit that passed by saw a different team with the advantage, and the seven different winners at the start of the year meant the championship could have gone in any direction. Red Bull gradually found their edge, and secured themselves, and Sebastian Vettel, a third consecutive title. However, it was a hard-fought battle that went right down to the wire, and it was an unforgettable season.

Season overview

The season began with some excitement in pre-season testing, when the Lotus team had to withdraw from some of the early days due to issues with their chassis. As the team that Kimi Räikkönen had chosen to make his big F1 comeback with, this seemed like it could herald difficult times ahead.

However, as soon as the racing action began in Australia, it was clear that firstly, Lotus were in no danger of slipping towards the back of the field, and secondly, that the season was shaping up to be a good one. Race after race passed by, and each one saw a different driver on top of the podium, until by the seventh Grand Prix, we had seen seven completely different victors - two of them for the first time in their F1 careers.

Midway through the season, Fernando Alonso was leading the championship, but gradually Red Bull found the pace they had been missing, and Sebastian Vettel won four races in a row. The championship went down to the final race in Brazil, with the favour always in Red Bull's direction. Alonso fought as hard as he could, but was pipped to the title in a tense and exciting season finale that wrapped up 2012 in the best possible way.