It is a race which is already being considered one of the most exciting in the annals of Formula 1.

There was a major shock at the very first lap. This was when Sebastian Vettel, setting off from fourth on the grid, had a disastrous opening, which saw him fall to the back. His car was crashed into at Turn Four and spun. The damage was deemed beyond repair, as it was not a front wing. Vettel, though, was not out of the race just yet, not by a long shot.

The Red Bull team were certain the situation was under control. By the eighth lap, Vettel had valiantly fought his way from the back of the field to find himself in seventh place. He then skilfully negotiated between Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button to move into sixth. This was a brilliant Lazarus like move of a champion, whom, at the outset, looked all but out of the running. It was an amazing comeback which now saw the championship back in Vettel’s reach. The German also had to watch out for Alonso’s Ferrari team mate Felipe Massa, whom had been blocking to help his compatriot.

Vettel and Alonso then made a pit stop and had intermediate tyres fitted. The German then found himself in a battle to overtake Nico Rosberg, but his determination carried him through. Vettel then had to close in on Kamui Kobayashi.

This was an idea of the constant pressure Vettel was under, in his attempt to secure the title. It was relentless. The Red Bull driver would eventually find himself in close quarters with Alonso, with the Spaniard only seconds in front. Vettel would also have Felipe Massa on his tail. The action was nonstop. Vettel would end up having to contend with both Alonso and Massa, but kept his eyes on the prize. He also had some help on the way by his Red Bull team mate Mark Webber, as well as fellow German Michael Schumacher.

There was also a point in the race when Vettel and Alonso had the exact same time. It was truly an inspirational effort from the German race car driver. He would maintain his determination for the entire race, where he ended up being the fastest driver on the track; one second ahead of the others.

This is the drive (no pun intended) which saw Sebastian Vettel come back from a possibly devastating collision at the very start, to eventually finish in sixth place. Well on his way to becoming champion.

There were many other drivers though, alongside Vettel and Alonso, all geared up to compete in Brazil. They were still looking for that one great win to round out the season.

Lewis Hamilton, for instance, who won the last race in the US a week ago, started the Brazilian Grand Prix from pole. He was engaged in a constant battle with his McLaren team mate Jenson Button, who qualified in second place. Hamilton was ahead of Button, but then, on lap 7, Button overtook him. Hamilton though retained first place at Turn One. However, Button ended up with the upper hand on lap eight, overtaking his compatriot once more.

Button found himself being pursued by an excellent Nico Hulkenberg, whom somewhat surpassed himself at São Paulo. He would spend a section of the race in first place, ahead of Hamilton, Button and Alonso. Lewis Hamilton would eventually get ahead of Hulkenberg. On the 54th lap, both drivers though would be involved in an unfortunate collision, resulting in Hamilton retiring from the race.

There was another decisive collision on the 70th lap, involving Paul di Resta. It brought out the safety car and prohibited drivers from overtaking. This left Jenson Button victorious. He ended up winning the Brazilian Grand Prix on the day. Fernando Alonso finished second, with his Ferrari team mate Felipe Massa, whom also had an exceptional race, coming in third.

It wasn’t enough for the Spaniard though to take the title away from Vettel. The German may have finished in sixth place, and it may have been a close call, but it was more than sufficient to clinch the 2012 Grand Prix championship.

In an interesting footnote, just as one German racer reached the pinnacle of his career, another is calling his a day. Following the Brazilian Grand Prix, the great Michael Schumacher, whom has had more success in the sport than any other driver, announced his retirement from Formula One. We will be sorry to see him go, as we look forward to the next Grand Prix season, in 2013.

It is taking place at the perfect location, which holds a special place in the hearts of lovers of Brazilian motor racing. It is the circuit which is often referred to by its previous name Interlagos, but is also called the Autódromo José Carlos Pace. This is the track in São Paulo which was named after the great Brazilian racing car driver Carlos Pace, whom competed in over 70 Grand Prixs in the seventies, but was tragically killed in a plane crash in 1977. This makes the circuit almost sacred to fans of Formula 1.

It is the ideal site to settle who will be named the 2012 champion. It is now between Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel from Germany, and Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, from Spain. It has been reported both divers are full of excitement over this upcoming title decider. The German is currently 13 points ahead of the Spaniard on the leader board. Vettel is thought by many to be odds on to win the championship in Brazil on Sunday.

If Alonso is going to take the title away from him, he has to come first in São Paulo and hope his rival finishes beneath fourth place. Alternatively, if the Spaniard finishes in second place, Vettel has to come in lower than seventh. If Alonso is in third place though, Vettel would have to finish beneath ninth spot for the Ferrari driver to be named champion.

This results in a thrilling close to the 2012 Grand Prix season at the Brazilian Grand Prix 2012, in São Paulo. This is where we will find out who will crack open the champagne as this years’ champion.

The race was held on Sunday at the magnificent Circuit of the Americas. It has the distinction of being the inaugural Formula One racing circuit built especially in the USA, at a cost of approximately $400 million. It is estimated in excess of a hundred thousand spectators watched the first US Grand Prix in five years.

It saw Sebastian Vettel start the race from pole position, with Hamilton in second place. The Brit though was right on the German’s tail from the beginning. He eventually overtook him with 14 laps remaining. Hamilton finished in first place, with the two title leaders Vettel and Alonso, in second and third place respectively. The McLaren driver won an incredible victory which serves as another twist in this amazing Grand Prix season, but it may not actually have too
much outcome on who gets named Grand Prix champion next weekend in Brazil.

It is still considered a two horse race between Germany’s Sebastian Vettel and Spain’s Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard will have to win the last race of the season, but needs Vettel to finish less than fourth place to win the championship. Alonso, though, could still win if he finishes second in Brazil, but needs his rival to come in lower than seventh. If the Spanish driver comes in third though, Vettel would have to cross the finish line in lesser than ninth spot.

This is what makes the title still on a tightrope, right up to the very end. There was one thing for Vettel and his team to celebrate in Austin though. It saw Red Bull being crowned the winners of this season’s constructors championship.

It is now on to the final race of the 2012 Formula one season. It is held at that beautiful sun kissed location where the championship will finally be decided once and for all.

Will it be Vettel or Alonso? We will find out at the Brazilian Grand Prix, or the Formula 1 Grande Premio Petrobras Do Brasil 2012, on Sunday the 25th of November.

It is the location of the US Grand Prix’s triumphant return, after an absence of five years. The event has gone through many incarnations and has had many different homes in its history. The race has existed in some form since 1908, when it was originally referred to as the American Grand Prize. The meet has previously been held in nine different sites, but has not taken place since the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2007. This weekend sees the US Grand Prix make its comeback to Formula One, at the appropriately named Circuit of The Americas. It has a circuit length of 5.513 km and covers a race distance of 308.405 km. This inaugural race at the Circuit of The Americas goes on for an enthralling 56 laps.

It could see the German Red Bull driver be named champion for a startling third time. This would make Vettel the youngest driver in history to earn that distinction. If Alonso should win the championship though, he too would be the youngest racer to win it three times. So this puts the championship, along with the record, on a knife edge, deep in the heart of Texas.

The Finnish driver has had an up and down relationship with Formula One. He has experienced the triumph of winning the World Drivers’ Championship, while racing with Ferrari in 2007, only to leave Formula 1 in 2009. He would eventually become a World Rally Championship driver. However, he returned to F1 as part of the Lotus team at the start of the year and has been saying how he was going to win another Grand Prix victory. It finally arrived with style on Sunday.

However, to begin with, it appeared to be different. Lewis Hamilton set off from an impressively won pole position. He was leading the Finn by half a second before he was beset by a fuel pump malfunction on the 20th lap and had to retire. Raikkonen then overtake Hamilton into first place, followed by Fernando Alonso, the driver whom ironically had replaced Raikkonen at Ferrari. But the Finn got retribution by going on to win the race. Alonso ended up finishing second, ahead of his rival at the head of the leader board, Sebastian Vettel. The German Red Bull driver had been forced to begin the race from the pit lane, after being disqualified despite finishing third in qualification, for having insufficient fuel left in his tank.Vettel suffered a few mishaps as he fought his way up from the pit lane. He collided with the Williams driver Bruno Senna, damaging his front wing in the process. He then went into the pits to have his wing and tyres replaced.

The race witnessed a collision on the ninth lap, which saw Mercede’s Nico Rosberg fly his car over Narain Karthikeyan’s HRT, but fortunately the drivers were not injured.

There was another collision on the 39th lap involving Vettel’s team mate Mark Webber, Raikkonen’s team mate Romain Grosjean and Sergio Perez, with Sauber.

The race was restarted on the 42nd lap. The aforementioned incident with the three drivers in front left the way clear for Vettel to move into a battle with Jenson Button for third place. The Red Bull racer finished in front to the British McLaren driver, who came in fourth. Pastor Maldonado with Williams was fifth, while sixth place was taken by Kamui Kobayashi with Sauber. The conclusion of the 2012 Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix now sees Sebastian Vettel 10 points ahead of Fernando Alonso, on top of the standings.

We are now down to the wire of the 2012 Grand Prix season. It is on to the penultimate meet of the year, the US Grand Prix in Austin Texas in two weeks time.