Jack Leslie F1: The F1 2014 season in pictures

Formula 1 entered a new era in 2014, with dramatic regulation changes producing an exciting and fascinating season.

Lewis Hamilton was crowned world champion in Abu Dhabi after a tense year-long battle with his team-mate Nico Rosberg. Here is a look back at the 2014 season in pictures.

Winter testing

Three winter tests - one in Spain (Jerez) and two in Bahrain - kicked off the season. Reliability proved to be a big problem, while the Lotus E22 was late to debut and Mercedes got off to a strong start.

Australia

The 2014 F1 season officially kicked off in Australia, with the first round producing an exciting race and an unusual podium. Rosberg won after his team-mate retired with power-unit problems, while Daniel Ricciardo and rookie Kevin Magnussen completed the top three.

However, the Red Bull driver was later disqualified after his car was found to have exceeded the fuel flow limit, promoting Jenson Button to third.

Malaysia

Hamilton bounced back in Malaysia to take a dominant first victory of the season, from Rosberg and Sebastian Vettel.

Bahrain

Bahrain was arguably the most dramatic race of the season, with wheel-to-wheel battles all the way through the field, including a great scrap for the lead between Hamilton and Rosberg, which the eventual world champion won.

China

Hamilton won his third consecutive race in China, while Rosberg recovered from a messy qualifying and first lap to finish second. Fernando Alonso finished third for Ferrari.

Spain

Another close fight between the two Mercedes drivers saw Hamilton win the first European race of the season in Spain and take the championship lead. F1 remained at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya after the weekend to complete the second two-day test of the year.

Monaco

A genuine error or a fake mistake? Cracks started to show at Mercedes after Rosberg's Q3 off-track excursion. He then went on to win the race on Sunday, with Hamilton failing to find a way through and eventually dropping into the clutches of Ricciardo.

Canada

Hamilton and Rosberg suffered almost identical reliability issues during the Canadian Grand Prix. The former retired, with Rosberg soldiering on to finish second. Riccardo narrowly avoided being wiped out by Massa and Sergio Perez's last-lap crash to take his maiden victory.

Austria

The Austrian hills were once again alive with the sound of F1 engines, with the sport returning to the upgraded Red Bull Racing for the first time since 2003. Felipe Massa took a surprise pole position, but Rosberg and Hamilton recovered to take a one-two, with Valtteri Bottas in third.

Britain

Hamilton secured his second victory on home soil after being promoted to the lead following a gearbox failure for his team-mate. Nevertheless, it was a storming recovery drive after a costly qualifying error. Bottas and Ricciardo completed the podium.

Germany

After a problem in first practice at Silverstone meant she only managed one flying lap, Susie Wolff was given a second chance and performed well in FP1 for the German Grand Prix.

The race was packed with on-track action, with Rosberg winning on home soil from Bottas and Hamilton, who crashed out of qualifying in the first segment after a brake failure and was forced to start from the back of the grid.

Hungary

In tricky conditions, Ricciardo moved up the field to take a popular second F1 victory. Alonso and Hamilton completed the podium, as the sport headed off for the summer break and factory shutdown.

Belgium

Contact between the two Mercedes drivers on lap two of the Belgian Grand Prix saw Ricciardo take his second consecutive F1 win, with Rosberg recovering to second and Hamilton retiring with damage.

Italy

After being hit by his team-mate in Belgium, Hamilton recovered some ground in the title fight by winning round 13 of the 2014 season. Rosberg lost the lead after a mid-race error, with Massa completing the top three.

Singapore

Hamilton had the front row all to himself in Singapore after an issue on the formation lap grid for Rosberg. The German eventually retired, while his team-mate secured yet another victory. Vettel and Ricciardo were second and third.

Japan

Sunday 5th October was a dark day for F1, following Jules Bianchi's horrible accident on lap 43 of the Japanese Grand Prix. Hamilton, Rosberg and Vettel made up the podium, but there was little to celebrate. #ForzaJules

Russia

The thoughts of the entire F1 community remained with Bianchi as the sport travelled to Sochi for the inaugural Russian Grand Prix. Hamilton took victory after a first lap error forced Rosberg to pit for fresh tyres. He eventually finished second, with Bottas in third.

USA

A strong second stint saw Hamilton overtake his team-mate and take the United States Grand Prix lead. He went on to easily win the race from Rosberg and Ricciardo.

Brazil

Rosberg dominated the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend, taking his fifth and final victory of the season and edging slightly closer to Hamilton in the drivers' standings.

Abu Dhabi

The double points season finale in Abu Dhabi decided the 2014 title. Rosberg started from pole position but a poor launch from the grid dropped him to second place. An ERS failure took him out of contention, leaving Hamilton at the front of the field.

He took the chequered flag in first place, winning his 11th race of the season and securing his second F1 world title. Rosberg eventually finished down in 14th, promoting Massa and Bottas to second and third.

Part one of my F1 2014 season review: http://bit.ly/1HZ4Mnw
Part two of my F1 2014 season review: http://bit.ly/1zuMmFp
F1 2014 performance grid: http://bit.ly/1vXzxCI
The F1 2014 season in statistics: http://bit.ly/1pikRhI

8 December 2014

The F1 2014 season in pictures

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