2014 Formula 1.5 Season

The 2014 Formula 1.5 season was the 65th season of the Formula 1.5 World Championship. The Season commenced in Australia on 16 March and concluded in Abu Dhabi on 23 November.

Jenson Button was the defending world champion. Fernando Alonso won the 2014 world championship, whilst Ferrari won the constructors.

## Teams and Drivers

### Team and Driver Changes

Ferrari was in F1.5 this year. The works team made their first appearance in the category since 1993, and brought along 2008 champion Alonso to bump the number of champions on the grid to 3, alongside Button and Hülkenberg. Button had a new teammate in rookie Magnussen, as Pérez vacated McLaren to move to Force India to partner the returning Hülkenberg. Sauber had been class of the field by the end of last year - making Sutil's move a real hero-or-zero decision. Lotus were another new team this year - having last competed as Renault in 2011. Grosjean had a few races of pretty anonymous experience back in 2009, while Maldonado would not follow his old team Williams up to F1.0 this year. Lastly, Kobayashi made his return after a year out, but eyebrows were raised at his decision to join Caterham of all teams.

## Season Calendar

### Calendar Changes

#### New and Returning races

* Red Bull reached an agreement with Bernie Ecclestone to revive the Austrian Grand Prix after a ten-year absence from the calendar. The race was held at the Red Bull Ring, which previously hosted the Austrian Grand Prix in 2003, when the circuit was known as the A1-Ring.
* The calendar saw the introduction of the Russian Grand Prix with the race staged at the Sochi Autodrom near the end of the season. The race took place on a street circuit constructed around the Sochi Olympic Park. It was the first Russian Grand Prix in a century, and the first time the country had ever hosted a round of the Formula 1.5 World Championship. The International Olympic Committee had cautioned that it would use its power to delay the race until 2015 if it felt that construction of the circuit and facilities were disrupting preparations for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games, but this proved not to be an issue.
* The Hockenheimring returned to the calendar to host the German Grand Prix, in keeping with the event-sharing agreement first established in 2008 with the Nürburgring for the two circuits to host the Grand Prix in alternating years. The Hockenheimring last hosted a Grand Prix in 2012.

#### Failed Bids

* The Indian Grand Prix was not held in 2014 following the devaluation of the Indian rupee and ongoing complications arising from Indian taxation laws, which had dogged the event since its inaugural race in 2011, with authorities classifying the Grand Prix as "entertainment", which under Indian law would have entitled the authorities to claim a portion of the teams' revenue as tax for competing in India, something they would have been unable to do if the race had been classified as a "sport". The race promoters initially came to an agreement with Bernie Ecclestone to skip the 2014 event and return to the calendar early in 2015; however, in March 2014, Ecclestone stated that the race would likely be pushed back to 2016 while the sport tried to resolve the taxation issue. As of 2022, the Indian Grand Prix has yet to see a return to the Formula 1 schedule.
* The Korean Grand Prix, Mexican Grand Prix, and the Grand Prix of America were included in the provisional calendar published in September 2013, but were later removed from the final calendar released in December

#### Other Changes

* The Bahrain Grand Prix was held as a night event under lights, similar to the Singapore Grand Prix. The decision to hold the race under lights was taken as a means of marking the tenth anniversary of the event.
* The United States Grand Prix had been provisionally scheduled for 9 November. However, the date coincided with a University of Texas American football team home game, which would have strained Austin's tourism infrastructure. The final calendar rescheduled the race for 2 November to eliminate this conflict.

## Regulation Changes

### Technical Regulations

* The 2014 season saw the introduction of a new engine formula, with turbocharged engines returning to the sport for the first time since 1988. The new engines were a 1.6-litre V6 format with an 8-speed semi-automatic gearbox. The rules dictated the use of a ninety-degree engine bank, with fixed crankshaft and mounting points for the chassis, while the engines were limited to 15,000 rpm. Individual engine units under the 2014 specifications had to last for at least 4,000 km (2,500 mi) before being replaced, in comparison to the pre-2014 engines, which were required to last for just 2,000 km (1,200 mi). The engines, now known as "power units", were divided into six separate components: the internal combustion engine (ICE); turbocharger (TC); Motor Generator Unit-Kinetic (MGU-K), which harvested energy that would normally be wasted under braking; Motor Generator Unit-Heat (MGU-H), which collected energy in the form of heat as it was expelled through the exhaust; Energy Store (ES), which functioned as batteries, holding the energy gathered by the Motor Generator Units; and Control Electronics (CE), which included the Electronic Control Unit and software used to manage the entire power unit.
	+ Under the previous generation of engines, used from 2006 to 2013, engines were subject to a development "freeze", which prohibited manufacturers from upgrading their engines. Faced with the complexity of the 2014 engines, the engine freeze was replaced with a points-trading system to prevent manufacturers from being unable to develop or improve their engines. Under the system, the individual parts of the engine were classified as Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3, and were assigned a points value there within. Engine manufacturers were given a budget of sixty-six points, which they were free to spend on engine development, with points deducted from their budget depending on the parts developed.
* The kinetic energy recovery system—known from 2009 to 2013 as KERS, and renamed from 2014 as ERS-K—was incorporated into the design of the engine and its usage increased; its function as a supplementary power source was taken by the introduction of the heat-based energy recovery system (ERS). The ERS unit captured waste heat as it was dispelled from the exhaust turbocharger, using an electrical device known as a heat motor generator unit. This waste heat was stored as an electrical charge until it was used by a complementary system called the kinetic motor generator unit. This device was connected directly to the drive train to deliver the additional power in the most direct and efficient way. In combination with the ERS-K it gave drivers an additional 161 bhp (120 kW) for thirty-three seconds per lap, compared to the KERS units used prior to 2014, which gave drivers 80 bhp (60 kW) for six seconds per lap. This energy was released into the powertrain by the electronic control unit (ECU) to promote the most efficient and effective application of the power, but the driver had the ability to manually override the ECU and use the remaining available power instantly.
* Teams were permitted to use electronic braking devices to manage the braking of the rear wheels as the increased power output from the ERS-K units made regulating the brake bias much harder than it had been previously.
* Teams were no longer allowed to change their gear ratios from race to race to suit the individual demands of a circuit. Instead, they had to nominate eight gear ratios ahead of the first race of the season, and these eight ratios were used at every Grand Prix. They were given one opportunity to change their ratios once the season had started, but any subsequent changes would have incurred a grid penalty.
* Lower noses returned for the first time since the 2010 season. The 2014 regulations required the use of lower noses than in previous years, in the interests of driver safety. The tip of the nose had to be no more than 185 mm (7.3 in) above the ground, in comparison to the 550 mm (22 in) allowed in 2012. These regulations were amended in June 2013 so as to completely outlaw the use of the "stepped noses" used in 2012 and 2013, thereby forcing teams to design a car with a genuinely lower nose rather than using the temporary solution.
	+ The original rules—first published in August 2011—also called for a variety of bodywork changes aimed at cutting downforce, most notably through the use of narrower front wings, and a shallower angle to the main plane of rear wings. These additional changes were formally abandoned in December 2012, but the requirement that cars be built with a nose no more than 185mm above the ground was retained. The planned reduction in front wing width from 1,800 mm (71 in) to 1,650 mm (65 in) was subsequently reintroduced.
* Teams were no longer able to use a beam wing at the rear of the car, a small carbon fibre wing mounted above the diffuser designed to generate low pressure as air passed over it, allowing them greater control over the air that was being deliberately directed over the diffuser.
* To promote fuel efficiency and limit horsepower levels seen in the 1980s, the last time Formula One used forced induction engines, fuel flow was restricted to 100 kg/h above 10,500 rpm; below 10,500 rpm a formula for the maximum flow was applied based on the rpm in use.
	+ Following Daniel Ricciardo's disqualification from the Australian Grand Prix for exceeding the fuel-flow limit, the FIA issued a Technical Directive preventing teams from making modifications to their fuel sensors after an investigation into the problem found that compounds in the bespoke fuel used by some teams were corroding a rubber seal in the sensor, leading to anomalous readings.
* The position of the exhaust outlet changed so that it was now angled upwards toward the rear wing instead of downwards to face the rear diffuser so as to make the practice of using exhaust blown diffusers—passing exhaust gasses over the rear diffuser to improve the car's downforce—extremely difficult to achieve.
* The minimum weight of the cars was increased from 642 kg (1,415 lb) to 691 kg (1,523 lb) to account for the increased weight of the engine, energy recovery units, and 2014 specification of tyres.
* In the week following the British Grand Prix, the FIA announced a total ban on the Front-and-Rear Interconnected suspension system (commonly abbreviated as FRIC) starting with immediate effect on the grounds that it was a movable aerodynamic device under Article 3.15 of the technical regulations. The FRIC system linked the front and rear suspension arrays together, using inertia to transfer hydraulic fluid across the car to offset the effects of weight transfer on the car under braking, acceleration and cornering, thereby creating a static ride height and improving stability.
* The use of false camera mountings was banned. Teams had previously exploited a loophole in the regulations that allowed them to add additional pieces of bodywork to the car in the place of camera mountings and take advantage of the aerodynamic benefits. From 2014, this loophole was closed, with the regulations rewritten to only allow camera mountings to be used for cameras. This rule was later updated to force the teams to mount the cameras on an external piece of bodywork after Red Bull fitted its cameras within the nose of the RB10 chassis.

### Sporting Regulations

* Mid-season testing returned in 2014. Three European venues each hosted a two-day test in the week following the Grand Prix held at the circuit with one test being held in the week after the final round in Abu Dhabi. In addition to this, teams had to dedicate one of these days to aiding tyre supplier Pirelli in the development of their tyres. These rules were later adjusted to allow teams to choose which venues they tested at during the season. Additionally, cars were also classified as "current", "previous" and "historic", with the FIA introducing limits on which cars could be used and the conditions under which they were tested. The end-of-season Young Driver Tests, which were held to give teams the opportunity to assess rookie drivers, were discontinued.
* The penalty system was overhauled in 2014 so as to improve driving standards, with the introduction of a "penalty points" system for driving offences. Under the system, driving offences carried a pre-determined points value based on their severity. These points were tallied up over the course of a season, with a driver receiving a race ban after accumulating twelve penalty points. Any driver who received a race ban would also have received an additional five penalty points upon their return, as a form of probation to discourage further driving offences. Penalty points remained on a driver's licence for twelve months, at which point they will have been removed.
	+ Stewards were given the power to hand out five-second penalties in addition to the existing range of penalties within their power. The five-second penalties were introduced for situations where a penalty was justified, but the existing penalties—such as a drive-through or a stop/go penalty—were considered too severe, or where such a penalty would radically alter the outcome of a race if applied retroactively, with penalised drivers facing the loss of championship points for otherwise minor violations of the rules. Drivers were permitted to serve these penalties before a regular pit stop, with the driver stopping in their pit bay for five seconds before any work was carried out on the car. The five-second penalty could also be added to a driver's total race time in the event that it was issued after they had made their final pit stop. Drivers serving drive-through or stop/go penalties were still not permitted to serve a penalty ahead of their pit stop, and were instead required to enter the pit lane separately to serve the penalty.
* The rules regarding unsafe pit releases—when a car is released from its pit bay to the lane directly into the path of an oncoming car—were rewritten, with the driver who was released in an unsafe fashion given a grid penalty for the next race.
* The pit lane speed limit was reduced from 100 km/h (62 mph) to 80 km/h (50 mph).
* Drivers were only able to use five engines over the course of a season in 2014, down from eight in 2013. Drivers who used a sixth engine started the race from the pit lane, as opposed to the ten-place grid penalty handed down for going over the engine quota in previous season. Drivers were only able to use five individual components of each power unit element over the course of the season. If a driver went over this quota for any individual element, they incurred a ten-place grid penalty. They would receive a further five-place penalty for going over the five-unit allocation of any other element after the original ten-place penalty was applied in a bid to stop teams changing multiple elements of the engine unit after receiving a grid penalty.
	+ In the event that such a penalty relegated a driver past the back row of the grid, the remaining penalty carried over to the next race. For example, if a driver qualified in nineteenth position and received a five-place grid penalty, they dropped to twenty-second and last place for that race, and then would receive an additional two-place penalty in the next Grand Prix. These penalties could only be carried over to the next race, rather than accumulate, and only applied to penalties issued for going over the component quota. Penalties cannot be carried over from season to season; when a driver incurred such a penalty during the final race of the season, the stewards had the power to issue time penalties during the race.
* The procedure for issuing penalties for speeding under yellow flag conditions in qualifying was changed for 2014. Previously, drivers had been forced to slow down in the timing sector of the circuit where a yellow flag was being waved. However, after a series of penalties were issued to drivers for speeding in a sector with yellow flags when the incident that triggered the yellow flag took place behind them, the FIA introduced a change to the procedure. Starting in 2014, the circuits were divided into two hundred metre intervals. In the event of a yellow flag, drivers had to demonstrate that they slowed down in the two hundred metres immediately before and after the yellow flags while they were being displayed, or else incurred a penalty.
	+ Following Jules Bianchi's accident at the Japanese Grand Prix, the FIA announced plans to introduce a mandatory speed limiter to cars that could be remotely activated from Race Control in the event of a yellow flag. Labelled "Virtual Safety Car" (VSC), the system is an alternative to the use of an actual safety car and was first tested during practice at the United States Grand Prix. The system originally aimed at restricting drivers to a 100 km/h (62 mph) speed limit under specific yellow flag situations, following reports that Bianchi had been travelling at 212 km/h (132 mph) when he left the circuit. Similar trials were conducted in Brazil and Abu Dhabi, with VSC ultimately being managed through specified sector (delta) times rather than a speed limit in affected sectors.
* Following a series of high-profile incidents involving tyres throughout the 2013 season that culminated in a string of explosive blow-outs at the 2013 British Grand Prix, the FIA passed a resolution granting them the power to change the specifications of the tyres used by competitors with immediate effect should the need arise.
* Drivers were assigned permanent numbers for the duration of their careers, with the championship adopting a system similar to the one used in MotoGP. The number 1 was the champion's right, with drivers free to choose any number from 2 to 99; the champion's "regular" number was reserved while the champion was using the number 1. The regulations further stipulated that a driver's number had to be clearly visible, both on their car and on their helmet. Previously, the numbering system had been partially based on the World Constructors' Championship finishing positions from the previous year.
* Drivers who did not take part in a qualifying period were assigned grid positions based on the qualifying bracket they were in at the time and their Free Practice 3 lap times. For example, if two drivers qualified for but did not take part in Q3, they started the race from ninth and tenth places, with the positions they took decided by their FP3 times. The rule was rewritten as grid positions for drivers who had not set lap times or left the pits had previously been decided by car numbers.
* The FIA introduced the "Pole Trophy", a non-championship award presented to the driver who qualified on pole for the most races.
* The qualifying format was adjusted to allow drivers more time to complete flying laps in Q3. The final qualifying period was extended to twelve minutes in length, with Q1 scaled back to eighteen minutes to keep the entire session within one hour.
	+ The 107% rule was relaxed at the start of the season to account for teams dealing with the challenges that arose from the new engine regulations. FIA Race Director Charlie Whiting was quoted as saying that the enforcement of the rule would be taken on a case-by-case basis, but that the stewards would consider a driver able to qualify provided they set consistent lap times in Free Practice.
* The FIA introduced a curfew system in 2011 that prohibited team personnel from accessing the circuit in the six hours before the first session of the day, with teams given four "jokers"—exceptions to the rule that allowed them to stay within the circuit boundaries past the curfew hours without penalty so as to complete work on cars—to use throughout the season. The rule was revised for 2014, with teams given six exceptions over the course of the year as a response to the introduction of the new engine formula.
* Drivers had to be able to return to the pits under their own power after the chequered flag had fallen in a bid to stop drivers from pulling over in order to preserve the mandatory one-litre fuel sample required to pass post-race scrutineering.
* Teams were now allowed to run up to four drivers during both Friday practice sessions, though they were still limited to entering a maximum of two cars during the sessions. If one of the team's nominated drivers was unable to take part, any replacement driver had to use the engine, gearbox and tyres which were allocated to the original driver.
* The final race of the season offered double points to teams and drivers in a bid to keep the championship fight alive for longer.
* Starting as of the Singapore Grand Prix, the FIA restricted pit-to-car communications, banning any radio transmissions between driver and team or pit boards displaying information that are deemed to be related to the performance of the driver or their car—such as discussing sector times relative to other cars—under Article 20.1 of the sporting regulations, which stated that a competitor must drive the car unaided.

## Season Report

### Round 1- Australia

The first competitive session of the season - Melbourne qualifying - and already it was total chaos. It started to rain in Q2, with the first victim being Räikkönen, whose spin prevented several drivers from improving their times. With the rain getting harder in the final part of qualifying, it became a day to remember for Magnussen as he took pole position for his debut F1.5 race. Alonso joined the Dane on the front row, with Vergne and Hülkenberg behind, and the third row comprising Kvyat and Button.

Magnussen wasn't daunted by pole, holding the lead off the start as Hülkenberg flew into second. Räikkönen also made a good start and was quickly up to 4th behind his teammate. Button's weekend had not got any better, though, as he lost a place and ran 7th. When an F1.0 car got a puncture and brought out the Safety Car on lap 12, Button took the initiative to pit and came out 4th. Now battling for second with Hülkenberg and Alonso, he was brought in early again for his second stop and jumped the pair of them. But this battling allowed Magnussen to one-up his qualifying performance by winning on his debut. Button took second with Alonso third. The rest of the points went to Hülkenberg, Räikkönen, Vergne, Kvyat, Pérez, Sutil, and Gutiérrez.

### Round 2- Malaysia

The second round of the season had qualifying held in the wet again, but this time it was Alonso who mastered the conditions to take pole by over a second from Räikkönen. Hülkenberg and Magnussen followed, with Vergne and Button completing the top six.

The race got underway without Pérez after the Mexican suffered a gearbox issue before the start. Alonso held the lead at lights out, with Hülkenberg moving up to second. On the second lap, Magnussen and Räikkönen came together, with the Finn receiving a puncture and the championship leader having to pit early as well. From there, it was a battle of strategies between the top two. Hülkenberg was the only man on a two-stop strategy when everyone else was on three. Alonso's third stop handed the lead to Hülkenberg, but the Ferrari had fresh tyres and a win to chase. On lap 53 of 56, Alonso made his move at turn 1 to retake the lead and claim his first victory since Singapore 2009. Hülkenberg was second with Button third. Magnussen, Kvyat, Grosjean, Räikkönen, Kobayashi, Ericsson, and Chilton completed the points.

### Round 3- Bahrain

To celebrate 10 years of the Bahrain Grand Prix, this race would be the first to be held under floodlights in the desert night. The man who lit things up on track in qualifying was Pérez, narrowly beating Räikkönen to pole position. Button and Magnussen took the second row ahead of Alonso and Hülkenberg.

In an action-packed start, Pérez maintained the lead as Button, Alonso, and Hülkenberg scrapped behind. Button claimed second, but Hülkenberg lost third place by locking up at Sakhir's infamous turn 10. On lap 5, the German passed Alonso to retake third. The Ferraris were in the pits early, with an undercut that briefly gave Alonso the lead. Pérez and Hülkenberg were not held up for long, though, as both were soon past - although their positions had swapped in the pit stops too, meaning Hülkenberg now led. Button had also lost out in the stops and was now in 4th, though Ferrari were using a three-stop strategy, meaning Button was soon back in third. While battling with an F1.0 car, Pérez surprised his teammate with a bold move through the esses to retake the lead before his second stop. This time, he kept the lead after Hülkenberg and Button made their stops, but a couple of laps later the race was turned upside down - literally, if you were Gutiérrez. The Safety Car came out to set up a great scrap in the closing laps. Pérez defended hard on the restart to keep the lead, while Button in third fell back before retiring with a clutch issue. With Magnussen also going out for the same reason, it was the worst result for the championship leaders. Pérez took victory ahead of Hülkenberg, with Alonso third. Räikkönen, Kvyat, Grosjean, Chilton, Maldonado, Kobayashi, and Bianchi completed the points.

### Round 4- China

As the season rumbled along into Shanghai, there was turmoil at Ferrari. Despite leading both championships, there were fierce arguments about whether they should even *be* in F1.5. As a result, their team principal, Stefano Domenicali, resigned before the weekend got underway. Luckily, that didn't affect their performance on track, as Alonso took pole ahead of Hülkenberg. Vergne and Grosjean took the second row, while Räikkönen and Button completed the top six.

There were no massive winners off the start - just a couple of losers, as Vergne and Button fell back from their top-six placings to the benefit of Kvyat and Pérez. Despite a difficult start of the season for Lotus, Grosjean's good qualifying and early defence of third place brought some hope for the Enstone team. That hope was diminished somewhat when Räikkönen got past after the first round of pit stops, and was eliminated entirely when the Frenchman had to retire with gearbox failure at about half distance. From there, the only real drama was when the chequered flag was waved a lap early by mistake. The rules stipulated that the results would be thus taken from lap 54 instead of 56, meaning a late pass from Kobayashi on Bianchi would not stand - although as no points were on offer, it didn't matter too much. Alonso took a commanding victory ahead of Hülkenberg and Räikkönen, with Pérez, Kvyat, Button, Vergne, Magnussen, Maldonado, and Gutiérrez completing the points.

### Round 5- Spain

The start of the European season tends to see the teams bring their first major car updates, and sure enough many did here. But after qualifying it seemed like Lotus had made the biggest improvement, as Grosjean took an unexpected pole ahead of Räikkönen. Alonso and Button took the second row ahead of Hülkenberg and Pérez.

On a track like Barcelona where passing is difficult, the start is key for any driver's hopes of a good result. Another bad start from Button, then, meant he was out of real contention once again. Grosjean, meanwhile, kept the lead but had two Ferraris on him the whole time. Pitting earlier than his pursuers meant the battle now switched to an intra-team one. The team opted to put Alonso on a three-stop strategy; technically quicker than a two-stop, but with a greater risk to track position. Räikkönen stayed ahead after both had stopped, but Grosjean was still ahead of them and leading. Grosjean then suffered a partial failure of his MGU-K, leaving him down on power and an easy target for the Ferraris. Räikkönen led as Alonso took his second stop, while Grosjean's car troubles weren't bad enough to lose him positions to the Force Indias behind. Alonso briefly led after Räikkönen's second stop and before his third, but emerging second on fresh rubber on lap 54 gave the Spaniard the momentum to catch his teammate and make a rare move at turn 4 to take the lead. Alonso's stranglehold on the championship continued as he took his third victory in the first five races, with Räikkönen second and Grosjean hanging on for third. Pérez, Hülkenberg, Button, Magnussen, Kvyat, Maldonado, and Gutiérrez completed the points.

### Round 6- Monaco

Alonso's magnificent start to the season continued with the ever-important pole position at Monaco, 7 tenths clear of Räikkönen. Vergne and Magnussen came behind, with Kvyat and Pérez completing the top six.

Maldonado suffered a fuel pump failure on the dummy grid, so he would not start the race. Räikkönen pounced at lights out to take the lead from his teammate, and Magnussen also got past Vergne. Meanwhile, Pérez had a scrappy start to the race, hitting first Button and then spinning into Sutil. The Force India was out and blocking the track at Mirabeau, requiring the intervention of the Safety Car. After the restart on lap 4, it became a story of who could keep going and stay out of trouble. Kvyat went out from fifth before Sutil had a big crash at the Nouvelle Chicane on lap 24, bringing out the Safety Car again and prompting everyone to pit. Down at Marussia, that meant Bianchi had to serve a time penalty for being out of place on the grid. Serving a penalty behind the Safety Car was also against the rules, though, so he earned another 5-second time penalty for his trouble. While behind the Safety Car, Räikkönen touched with the lapped Chilton and got a puncture. The Finn had lost the lead and was now down at the back. It was now Alonso leading Vergne and Hülkenberg, but Vergne was soon out too. Gutiérrez then hit the barrier at Rascasse and went out from a season-best 5th place. Räikkönen was now back up to 5th and willing to make some bold moves, but a failed move on Magnussen at the hairpin meant neither would finish well.

Alonso had a much calmer time of it to take another win, with Hülkenberg second and Button third. Bianchi was 4th on the road, an incredible result for Marussia, but his penalty pushed him back to 5th and moved Grosjean up. It was still Marussia's best result since Timo Glock finished 5th at Singapore 2012. After Grosjean and Bianchi came Magnussen, Ericsson, Räikkönen, Kobayashi, and Chilton.

### Round 7- Canada

F1.5's brief trip across the Atlantic brought Alonso his 4th pole position of the season, with Vergne a season-best second. Button and Räikkönen lined up behind, with Hülkenberg and Magnussen completing the top six.

At the start, Vergne went wheel-to-wheel with Alonso to take the lead by the second chicane, but the race was quickly neutralised as the Marussias came together, forcing both into retirement and the intervention of the Safety Car. It was Chilton's first retirement of his F1.5 career! Vergne led from the restart until his first pit stop, but Alonso had been freed to go full pace and join ahead of the Toro Rosso after his own stop. The Force Indias were both on contrary one-stop strategies, so Pérez now led Hülkenberg after a better start from the Mexican. By the time Alonso had stopped twice, Pérez and Hülkenberg had made their stops, but it was still Pérez leading with Hülkenberg second and Alonso third. But it was Button who was really on the move in the closing stages. After a pretty anonymous first half of the race, he'd passed Vergne for 4th and was now just behind Alonso and Hülkenberg. On the penultimate lap, he passed both of them to take second place, but at the start of the final lap Pérez crashed heavily with an F1.0 car, bringing out the Safety Car to allow Button to coast to his first victory of the season. Hülkenberg was second and Alonso third. Vergne, Magnussen, Räikkönen, Pérez, Sutil, and Gutiérrez completed the points with only 9 finishers.

### Round 8- Austria

F1.5 was back in Austria for the first time since 2003. Button won that 2003 race en route to the title - could he match that performance 11 years later? Qualifying saw Alonso take pole ahead of Magnussen, with Kvyat and Räikkönen on the second row ahead of Hülkenberg and Button after 6th-placed Pérez took a penalty for his role in the final lap crash in Canada.

Alonso held the lead off the start with Magnussen and Räikkönen slotting in behind. Pérez was undeterred by his grid penalty as he was back up to 6th by the end of the first lap, and on different tyres to boot, setting him up for an interesting race. Pérez and Button would stay out long for the first stint and take their second stops late in the race to be on the supersofts for the end. After Pérez's first stop, Alonso resumed the lead, but Pérez was soon up to third behind Magnussen after a quick move on teammate Hülkenberg. Button wasn't having the same impact, and was instead down in 6th. Once the final stops had been made, it was Alonso leading Magnussen and Pérez. Force India's plan looked to be working, though, as Pérez was quickly catching the Dane. On lap 66, the move came on the exit of turn 1 and Pérez was up to second. Alonso was too far ahead, though, as he took his fifth win of the season ahead of Pérez and Magnussen. Hülkenberg, Räikkönen, Button, Maldonado, Sutil, Grosjean, and Bianchi completed the points.

### Round 9- Great Britain

A rainy Q1 at Silverstone proved disastrous for Ferrari, and the perfect recipe for their rivals to finally put a dent in their championship advantage. Indecision over tyres caused Alonso and Räikkönen to start 10th and 12th after penalties for others, but it was the perfect day for Button as the reigning champion took his first pole position of the season ahead of Hülkenberg. Magnussen and Pérez took the second row ahead of Kvyat and Vergne.

Button kept the lead at lights out as Magnussen rocketed past Hülkenberg. Vergne tried a move on Pérez through turn 2 and ended up turning the Force India round, dropping Pérez to the back of the field. That gave him a perfect view for Räikkönen's dramatic crash on the exit of turn 5 - the Ferrari ran wide, bounced over a rain gully on the way back onto the track, and was sent sideways into the barrier. The red flags were brought out due to damage to the barrier as everyone sat on the grid for over an hour before the restart.

All eyes were on Alonso once the race restarted. Running 8th but taking the option tyre during the red flag, he had places to make up and the pace to do it. Alonso passed Gutiérrez on lap 2, Sutil and Bianchi on lap 3, Kvyat on lap 6, and Hülkenberg on lap 8 to sit third behind the two McLarens. Alonso's relentless pace continued as he hunted down Magnussen, passing him on lap 15, and then passing Button for the lead on lap 25 before making his stop. Magnussen pitted in response, but it was to no avail as he lost second place. Button stayed out a little longer but managed to keep the lead after his stop. During the second stint, Alonso's pace on the hard tyre was less impressive and he began focusing more on defending from Magnussen. Meanwhile, Pérez's recovery attempts weren't working anywhere near as well, with Force India not being on the leaders' pace in general. Button took victory at home for the first time since 2005, ahead of Alonso and Magnussen. Hülkenberg, Kvyat, Vergne, Pérez, Grosjean, Sutil, and Bianchi completed the points.

### Round 10- Germany

The big news as F1.5 came to Hockenheim was the effective ban on the suspension layout known as FRIC (Front to Rear Inter-Connected), which had seen varying levels of use over the last few years. The system was designed to keep the floor as level as possible during heavy braking to keep downforce levels stable at all times. The FIA indicated a possibility that this counted as a movable aerodynamic device, and to prevent a long legal battle about it all teams opted to scrap the system from the German Grand Prix onwards.

On track, with questions surrounding how these new rules would affect the competitive order, Magnussen took pole for the first time since Australia, with Alonso alongside. Kvyat and Hülkenberg came behind, with Pérez and Button completing the top six.

The start saw Magnussen make a quick start from pole, unfortunately getting him into the path of an F1.0 car which rolled over as the two made contact. Magnussen was able to continue, but was down in last after a pit stop for a new front wing as the Safety Car came out. Alonso led Hülkenberg and Button, and as Alonso set about building a gap as he had so often this year, it was a strategy battle for second. Most drivers were on a three-stop, but Hülkenberg was one of a few to opt for a two-stop. With Magnussen recovering up to 4th, it was Alonso leading out front with Button second and Hülkenberg third by lap 40. When Button made his final stop on lap 61, he relinquished second to Hülkenberg and would be unable to catch him. Alonso took win number 6 in 2014 ahead of Hülkenberg and Button, with Magnussen, Pérez, Räikkönen, Maldonado, Vergne, Gutiérrez, and Bianchi completing the points.

### Round 11- Hungary

Qualifying in Budapest gave the threat of rain all afternoon, before finally breaking at the start of Q3. With the drivers out on slicks, it was looking like an all-or-nothing effort to maximise pace while they still could. But when Magnussen skidded off track at the first corner, the red flags came out and the rain stopped. That allowed Alonso to take pole once again ahead of Button. Vergne and Hülkenberg took the second row, and with Magnussen starting from the pit lane after his crash, the third row was comprised of Kvyat and Sutil - a good effort from the Sauber.

More rain fell before the start of the race, forcing everyone to start on intermediate tyres. Kvyat failed to get away for the formation lap and joined Magnussen in the pit lane. At the start, Alonso kept the lead as Hülkenberg passed Vergne for third. Both Kvyat and Magnussen had progress to make from the pit lane, but neither had made much impact before Ericsson made quite an impact on the barrier after turn 3. The Safety Car came out as everyone dived into the pits. Alonso had already passed the pit lane when the Safety Car was deployed, so he had to circulate around for another lap before getting his chance, letting Button into the lead. However, while everyone else had gone for slicks in these first stops, Button had been put on another set of inters, while Magnussen had not pitted at all and was now second on his starting tyres. As the track dried on the restart, it was clear that McLaren had made a big mistake, and both were soon in for slicks but well down the order. Alonso now led ahead of Vergne, with Pérez third after a collision with Hülkenberg put the German out of the race. Pérez soon joined his teammate in retirement with a dramatic spin out of the final corner, bringing out the Safety Car again. Alonso continued to lead Vergne, but the Frenchman's defence of the F1.0 cars behind him allowed Räikkönen to close up and take second after both had made their second pit stops.

Alonso capped off the first part of the season with yet another win, with Räikkönen taking second for Ferrari's second 1-2 of the year. Vergne took his and Toro Rosso's first podium of the season ahead of Button, Sutil, Magnussen, Maldonado, Kvyat, Bianchi, and Chilton.

### Round 12- Belgium

The summer break had been and gone, and it was time to go racing once again. Could anyone stop Alonso and Ferrari in the 8 remaining races? That wasn't a question Marussia or Caterham were asking themselves, but they were the only ones with changed lineups for the race at Spa. Stepping in for Kobayashi this race was 3-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner André Lotterer, some 12 years after his last F1.5 experience testing for Jaguar. Things were a little more complicated at Marussia, where it was announced on Thursday that newly-signed test driver Alexander Rossi would replace Chilton due to the Briton's "contractual issues". After having Rossi take over for FP1, the team reversed their decision and had Chilton race anyway.

Qualifying was equally dramatic, as heavy rain affected all three sessions. It was still Alonso who mastered the conditions, though, 9 tenths clear of Magnussen. Räikkönen and Button followed, with Kvyat and Vergne taking to the third row. The debuting Lotterer also outqualified teammate Ericsson by almost a second, albeit with both on the back row of the grid.

Things had been pretty good for Alonso so far this year, you might say. On the grid before the race, though, it was nearly disaster. His car failed to fire up due to a flat battery, and though his mechanics were able to install a spare in time for him to retake position during the formation lap, he was awarded a time penalty to be served during his pit stop for having personnel on the grid too late. At the start, Räikkönen passed Magnussen for second, setting up Ferrari well to salvage something. With Alonso destined to be delayed 5 seconds in the pits, Räikkönen was brought in for his first stop early, aiming to keep an undercut on Magnussen to take the lead. Räikkönen duly took the lead after the first pit stops, with Alonso now third behind Magnussen. What followed was a titanic battle as Alonso tried to pass the McLaren time and time again, with some fierce defending from the rookie.

Over the course of the race, their battles allowed 4th-placed Button to get close, culminating in the crazy events of the final three laps. Alonso had a slipstream from the Caterham of Ericsson that the trio were about to lap, but Magnussen shut the door, forcing Alonso partially off-track and letting Button through. Button then tried a move on his teammate but was pushed wide and Alonso retook third. Alonso tried to pass Magnussen again on the following lap, and was himself passed by an F1.0 car in the middle of the scrap for it. Entering the final lap, Alonso clipped the back of the F1.0 car and lost part of his front wing, giving Button the opportunity to pass on the Kemmel straight. All of this was happening some 20 seconds behind Räikkönen, who finally claimed his first victory of the season. Magnussen and Button completed the podium ahead of Alonso, Pérez, Kvyat, Hülkenberg, Vergne, Sutil, and Gutiérrez.

That is, until after the race when Magnussen was given a 20-second penalty for pushing Alonso off the track in his lap 42 defending move, pushing him down to 8th. Alonso's streak of podiums continued!

### Round 13- Italy

Ferrari could go to its home event with plenty of confidence, with comfortable leads in both championships and wins in the last 3 races. Before anything happened on track to prove them right or wrong, there was more driver drama at Caterham. Lotterer had planned on continuing to drive for the team after retiring on the second lap at Spa, but upon learning that the team wanted to run Formula Renault 3.5 driver Roberto Merhi during FP1, he left the team citing his requirement for maximum track time. Kobayashi thus returned to the seat.

On track, McLaren spoiled Ferrari's party as Magnussen took his third pole of the season, with Button in second. Alonso and Pérez took to the second row, with Räikkönen and Vergne completing the top six after a penalty for 5th-placed Kvyat for taking his sixth engine of the season.

With everyone set to run a one-stop strategy, it was an all-out race at Monza. The top four kept position at the start, though Alonso and Pérez briefly fought over third. Pérez was the first to stop on lap 19, managing to jump Button and Alonso into second by the time they'd come in as well. On lap 29, disaster struck for Alonso as his energy recovery system failed, causing his first retirement of the season and ending a streak of podiums that started back in Australia. Kvyat was now leading having stayed out long in his first stint, but after his stop it was Magnussen who resumed at the front. For the second race in a row, he was defending his position hard, but this time it was against an F1.0 car. For the second race in a row, Magnussen pushed his attacker off the track during an overtake attempt, and for the second race in a row received a time penalty for his troubles. If he was going to win this race, he needed a 5-second gap at the flag. Instead, the next three cars were within 2 seconds of the McLaren. Magnussen crossed the line first, but was immediately demoted to 4th, with Pérez instead taking victory for the second time this year ahead of Button and Räikkönen. Behind Magnussen came Kvyat, Hülkenberg, Vergne, Maldonado, Sutil, and Grosjean to complete the points.

### Round 14- Singapore

Although his championship position remained strong, Alonso wanted to get his DNF at Monza behind him as quickly as possible as he took pole under the lights in Singapore ahead of teammate Räikkönen. Magnussen and Kvyat followed behind, with Button and Vergne taking the third row.

Kobayashi's engine failed on the formation lap, so the race would start without him. When it did, Alonso and Räikkönen maintained position at the front, while Button surged ahead to third. These three would remain up front, while behind Magnussen battled with the Toro Rossos over 4th. Vergne passed Kvyat before getting the undercut on Magnussen. On lap 30, Pérez and Sutil came together as the Force India was trying to recover from a poor qualifying. The debris required the intervention of the Safety Car - bad news for Räikkönen who had already made his second stop and was behind Button. Alonso now led Button and Räikkönen on the restart. Things stayed pretty static up front until Button suffered an electrical failure on lap 53. Hülkenberg was promoted to third thanks to not making a stop around lap 45 like Magnussen, Vergne, or Pérez. The fact that they had, however, gave them great pace in the closing laps. Alonso was untroubled by any of this, as he took his eighth victory of the season. Second was Vergne, scything through the pack after his final stop, and similarly third was Pérez, who'd passed three cars in the last two laps to take an unlikely podium. Räikkönen ended up 4th ahead of Hülkenberg, Magnussen, Maldonado, Grosjean, Kvyat, and Ericsson.

### Round 15- Japan

The discussion as the teams arrived at Suzuka was around the impending landfall of Typhoon Phanfone - though the storm would not hit the circuit in itself, it would likely pass close enough to bring torrential rain at some point. The race could not be postponed due to the tight schedule for the remaining events, so it was a decision of cancellation or not based on conditions at the time. Qualifying was dry, however, and Alonso once again took pole ahead of Magnussen. Button and Räikkönen were next, and after an engine penalty for Vergne the third row was filled by Pérez and Kvyat.

Sunday brought the predicted rain from the passing typhoon. The race was started at its scheduled time, despite the conditions looking likely to cause some delays and sunset being less than three hours away. The field circulated behind the Safety Car for two laps before the red flags were brought out. A race has to last two laps to count for the championship with half points, and Ericsson spinning behind the Safety Car was enough to prove that it wasn't safe to race yet. 20 minutes later, the race resumed with 7 more laps behind the Safety Car, but on the first of those Alonso retired with an electrical issue. Would reliability be his undoing this late in the season?

Magnussen led the field at the end of lap 9 to start the race as Button dived into the pits for intermediate tyres. Ever strong in difficult conditions, Button's call turned out to be the correct one as everyone followed him in over the next few laps, but by lap 15 Button was leading Hülkenberg and Räikkönen after Magnussen made an extra stop to change his steering wheel. Conditions improved for a time, with DRS even being activated on lap 23. Räikkönen lost third place due to a slow stop for new inters and found himself in a battle with Kvyat, Vergne, Pérez, and surprisingly Gutiérrez. More rain arrived on lap 36, catching out Magnussen and Vergne before DRS was disabled on lap 41. Button, Räikkönen, and Magnussen stopped for full wets as Sutil aquaplaned into the barrier at Dunlop Curve. The Sauber was being extracted by a mobile crane under yellow flags when Bianchi lost control at the same corner and collided with the crane.

The Safety Car was brought out as Bianchi was reported unconscious after not responding to his radio or the attending marshals. The weather conditions prevented Bianchi from being airlifted to hospital, so he was driven by ambulance instead. The race was red-flagged again on lap 46 and would not be restarted; results would be taken from lap 44, the first lap under Safety Car. Button won ahead of Hülkenberg and Vergne, with Pérez, Kvyat, Räikkönen, Gutiérrez, Magnussen, Grosjean, and Maldonado completing the points. The race had lasted just long enough to reach the 75% distance required for full points.

### Round 16- Russia

A new event on the F1.5 calendar ought to have been an exciting occasion, but for several reasons the inaugural Russian Grand Prix was anything but. Only a week separated the events at Suzuka and Sochi, so the shocking events of the last race were still fresh in the mind. FIA regulations require two entries per team at each race, so Marussia submitted Alexander Rossi as Bianchi's replacement, but withdrew his entry before the weekend started, instead opting to build up Bianchi's car and put it in his side of the garage as a mark of respect. There was also the existing controversy over even racing in Russia to begin with, given the country's human rights record and international incidents throughout 2014. Frankly, it was of the smallest concern that the circuit didn't look very interesting; a fairly characterless affair circling the Winter Olympic Park, with its main feature the very long Turn 3.

Still, there was some racing to be had. Button took pole ahead of home favourite Kvyat, with Alonso and Räikkönen starting on the second row ahead of Vergne and Magnussen, after the Dane was penalised from third for changing his gearbox.

Kvyat's first home race started badly, as he fell to 5th on the first lap. Räikkönen also lost places, while Magnussen was on the move and soon took third from Vergne. Toro Rosso's day went backwards from there, as they struggled with fuel consumption and couldn't defend as hard as they wanted to. With only one pit stop on the cards due to Pirelli's intentionally conservative options for this first race at a new circuit, timing of it would be crucial. Alonso tried to undercut Magnussen to keep second place, but staying out longer allowed the McLaren to take the position instead. Button was unchallenged at the front, taking victory ahead of Magnussen and Alonso. Räikkönen, Pérez, Hülkenberg, Vergne, Kvyat, Gutiérrez, and Sutil completed the points.

### Round 17- United States

As F1.5 made its way to Texas, it was without the Caterham and Marussia teams. The financial difficulties both teams had faced for some time had forced them into administration, and both were granted permission to miss the race as a result. After a pretty anonymous race last time out, Alonso was quick to get back to the front with pole position. Button was second fastest but took a grid penalty for changing his gearbox, so Magnussen would start from the front row ahead of Räikkönen and Sutil, with Maldonado and Pérez completing the top six.

The start saw Alonso keep the lead amid an incident at turn 12 where Pérez tried to pass Sutil and ended up making contact with both the Sauber and the Ferrari of Räikkönen. Kimi could continue, but Sutil and Pérez were out, with the debris requiring the Safety Car. Magnussen, Button, Hülkenberg, and Gutiérrez took the opportunity to pit early, promoting Maldonado to third. Those who stayed out opted for a traditional two-stop strategy, but McLaren were hoping to make essentially a one-stop from the restart, having started on soft tyres and now dropping them for mediums. After rising to the lead when the others made their stops, the McLarens' second stops dropped them back once again. Magnussen was more comfortable than Button at this stage, and not helping was the reigning champion getting stuck behind Grosjean for several laps. As a result, he was too close to the chasing pack when his tyres went off at the end of the race. With Alonso still leading Magnussen, Button dropped off from third very quickly in the last five laps. Alonso took victory in Austin ahead of Magnussen second. Vergne crossed the line in third, but took a penalty for hitting Grosjean while overtaking - promoting Maldonado to his first podium of the season. Vergne, Grosjean, Button, Räikkönen, Gutiérrez, and Kvyat rounded out the 9 finishers.

Alonso's ninth victory of the season and Button finishing 6th meant that Alonso had secured the 2014 F1.5 Drivers' Championship. 75 points separated the two, and though 75 points were still available, Alonso would still win on countback.

### Round 18- Brazil

Although Alonso had wrapped up the Drivers' title already, the Constructors' Championship was still available to McLaren if things went perfectly for them in the final two races. Caterham and Marussia were not present at this race either, citing prohibitive costs of travel and only being a week after the US event. On track, Button took pole ahead of Magnussen to set up a title challenge for McLaren. Alonso and Räikkönen filled the second row ahead of Gutiérrez and Hülkenberg.

The top three got away well at the start, as Gutiérrez improved on his impressive qualifying by passing Räikkönen on the first lap. It quickly became a race of strategy, as the McLarens and Alonso were on three-stops, while Hülkenberg and Räikkönen looked to be on two-stops. Magnussen suffered from high tyre degradation in his third stint, allowing Alonso to pass and forcing the Dane's final stop to come earlier than expected. After the final scheduled stops, Hülkenberg led Räikkönen and Button, but it turned out not to be so simple as the two-stoppers' tyres faded massively. Hülkenberg bailed out and took a third stop on lap 60, falling to 5th behind Magnussen before passing the McLaren on his fresher tyres. Räikkönen stuck with it, but Button was able to go round the outside of Descida do Lago on lap 61 to retake the lead, and Alonso followed not long afterwards. Button took the win ahead of Alonso and Räikkönen, but Hülkenberg was just 2 tenths behind the Ferrari in 4th ahead of Magnussen, Kvyat, Maldonado, Vergne, Gutiérrez, and Pérez.

### Round 19- Abu Dhabi

Lots to talk about as the season came to a close in Abu Dhabi. As mentioned, the race would provide double points - no comfort to anyone as far as the Drivers' Championship was concerned, but there was still a mathematical chance for McLaren to take the Constructors'. They'd need a 1-2 finish with Ferrari scoring 4 points or fewer; Ferrari would win with a single 8th place or even both cars finishing 9th and 10th. There were also some changes to the race entrants, as Caterham managed to attend the race after a successful crowdfunding campaign raised nearly £2 million for the team's return. Kobayashi would drive for the team as he had for most of the year, but Ericsson's contract had been terminated. In his place came Will Stevens, making his F1.5 debut following three seasons in Formula Renault 3.5. Marussia would still not be present, however.

Just because it was the final race of the year doesn't mean there couldn't be surprises, as qualifying proved with Kvyat taking his first pole position, ahead of Button. Räikkönen and Alonso came behind, with Magnussen and Vergne completing the top six.

If Kvyat had any hopes of converting pole to a 50-point victory, those had to be dashed as he fell to 4th on the opening lap. Magnussen and Vergne also got bad starts as the Force Indias gained places. Button led Räikkönen and Alonso before the new champion pitted first to undercut his teammate. Räikkönen in fact lost third to Kvyat as well, but the polesitter was soon out of the race with driveshaft failure. Hülkenberg and Pérez were now out front, having started on the prime tyre and performing better on it than the likes of Vergne and Magnussen who'd done the same. Magnussen pitted onto the option tyre at his first stop but made little impact with it and ended up falling behind the Ferraris, while Vergne was on a three-stop and fell back even further. Force India put their drivers on a second set of primes at their first stop, so they were back in the lead once the trio of Button, Alonso, and Räikkönen made their second stops. Hülkenberg was boxed first for a set of options to close out the race, and passed the Ferraris to get up to second by the time Pérez came in and did the same to move up to the podium places.

Button won the final race of the year ahead of the charging Hülkenberg and Pérez. Alonso, Räikkönen, Magnussen, Vergne, Grosjean, Gutiérrez, and Sutil completed the points. Ferrari may have missed out on the podium, but finishing 4th and 5th secured them the 2014 F1.5 Constructors' Championship.