Driver Of The Year - 16th - 20th

We are now looking at the drivers in 20th, 19th, 18th, 17th, & 16th place for the Driver Of The Year Award.

20th - Jarno Trulli
Team - Lotus Races - 18 Best Finish - 13th (Australian & Monaco GP)
Jarno has had an indifferent year. His two 13th placed finished meant he finished as "Best Of The Rest", beating team mate Kovalainen. However, Jarno's 2011 has also had downsides. When both Kovalainen & Trulli have finished, Jarno has only beaten Heikki twice. He has also had four retirements, and at the German GP he was replaced by test driver Karun Chandhok. Results on the track has also had a knock-on affect to off-the-track. In mid-season, there were rumours that Jarno could call time on his F1 career. However, these were rejected by Jarno, as he signed a one-year extension to his contract that should see him race for Caterham next year. Surely though, 2012 could be Jarno's swan-song. Yes, he will be desperate to get Caterham's first points in F1, but on paper, Heikki looks the more likely to gain it.

19th - Heikki Kovalainen
Team - Lotus Races - 19 Best Finish - 13th (Italian GP)
2011 has seen Heikki take the number one status at Lotus. His performances have helped maintain Lotus as the "Best Of The New Teams", and his experience has helped him close the gap on the licks of Williams and Toro Rosso. Indeed, three times this year, Kovalainen has got his Lotus into the second round of qualifying. In races too, Heikki has found himself well in the midfield. Even at the end of races, for example, he beat Maldonado at China, Barrichello at Williams and Perez at Korea. Heikki will surely be hoping for an improvement next year. After two years in F1, they have little to show for it, and it cannot be long before Heikki gets fed up. Points has to be a target next year. If they do not get a top 10 finish, then we could see a completely new driver line-up at Caterham next year.

18th - Pastor Maldonado
Team - Williams   Races - 19   Best Finish - 10th (Belgium GP)
Venezuelan Maldonado has had an up-and-down 2011. He had a poor start to the season, with two early retirements at Australia and Malaysia. A 15th place at Spain did mean he finished ahead of team mate Barrichello. Then, his season started to pick up a bit. At Monaco, he started to make a name for himself. He was racing in the points for most of the race, until a tangle with Hamilton meant he did not finish. His mini-hot streak continued with two 14th places at Silverstone & Nurburgring. Then at Spa, Belgium Pastor got his first World Championship Point with tenth place. It was a point well deserved, and it was extra nice as Barrichello could only manage a 16th place finish. Pastor's form continued with two consecutive elevenths. However, in the last five races, he lost his form. He had three retirements, and two fourteenth places.  Pastor has done OK in his rookie season. He beat Rubens on five occasions, but in a slow car, his expectations were not very high. A new engine supplier for Williams - Renault - could see an improvement in results. Pastor will be hoping so, as it was confirmed that he would keep his racing seat for 2012.

17th - Nick Heidfeld
Team - Renault    Races - 11   Best Finish - 13rd (Malaysian GP)
"Quick Nicks" season got off to a great start. A podium finish in the second race of the year (Renault's second) showed that they could be a possible threat throughout the year. However, it appeared that that was a small blip. In Nick's remaining 9 races, the highest race finish he got was seventh at Istanbul. Nick's season turned for the worse however, when he was sacked by his team. Renault said that he had underperformed, and he was to be replaced by Bruno Senna. It was very unfair for the veteran German, who is a fans favourite. Nick had to say goodbye to Renault, and had to settle with watching F1 on the TV, with no other seat available. That decision by Renault seems to have ensured that we will not see Nick in a F1 car again. He is not currently rumoured to be in discussions with anyone, instead he may go to the German Touring Car Championships - DTM. It will be a huge shame for F1 if this happens. Nick has to ability to do some great things in a Formula One car.

16th - Sergio Perez
Team - Sauber   Races - 18   Best Finish - 7th (British GP)
Sergio Perez has made a real impact on his first season in F1. On his debut, he suprised the whole field with one of the drives of the year. With just the one pitstop, he got his Sauber upto seventh, only for both Sauber's to be disqualified for an illegal car. This set back cost Sergio little. He soon got his first F1 points, with ninth at Barcelona. His form seemed to be continuing into the Monaco GP, but a huge accident in the last session of qualifying ended his race weekend. Injuries sustained from the crash also meant that he could not race at Canada, and De La Rosa took his place.On his return, Sergio soon got back up to pace. On his second race back, Sergio took a year-best seventh place at Silverstone, beating veterans Heidfeld and Schumacher. The young Mexican continued this way right to the end of the season. In the final six races, he got three top ten finishes, including an eighth place at Japan. Sergio's future seems very bright. He has a contract with Sauber for next year. After that, he looks like a possible replacement for Felipe Massa at Ferrari. Lest wait and see...