The 2012 Formula 1 season will be known for being one of the years that there were seven different winners in seven races.
It was a highly competitive start to the year following Red Bull dominance in 2011, after they perfected Adrian Newey’s blown diffuser concept on the RB7.
With Pirelli now in their second year of producing the tyres for F1, blown diffusers banned, and further restrictions on front wing design, it opened up the competition more than it has been since the 2009 season.
McLaren produced one of the quickest and most aesthetically pleasing cars as a result of the front wing design rules, while everyone else went with a ‘stepped nose’ concept more commonly known as the platypus nose.
Jenson Button won the opening race of the season while Lewis Hamilton also started from pole, but their rivals were edging closer. By the Monaco Grand Prix, Red Bull had caught up after starting off the year on the back foot, while Williams were now proven race winners with Pastor Maldonado.
Fernando Alonso had also thrown his hat into the ring with victories for Ferrari in Malaysia and Valencia, while Mercedes won their first race with Nico Rosberg at the Chinese GP.
Jenson Button starts from pole ahead of two unexpected drivers in 2012 Belgian Grand Prix
By the 12th round of the season in Belgium, McLaren had come off the back of a win for Lewis Hamilton at Hungary and were looking like the favourites in Spa Francorchamps.
The Mercedes V8 was always favoured at high-speed circuits due to its greater straight-line speed, and with the 100m elevation change at Eau Rouge, it was the perfect combination of power.
Button duly took pole, but there were two unexpected starters behind him in the form of Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi and Maldonado in the Williams.
Maldonado had a reputation for crashing at this stage of his F1 career, so all eyes were on him at the start, along with Lotus driver Romain Grosjean, who Mark Webber had branded a “first-lap nutcase” after his first-lap tangle in Japan.
Even Martin Brundle wore a hard hat and referenced the ‘Danger Zone’ between Grosjean and Maldondo’s car while doing his gridwalk for Sky Sports F1. His flippant comments aside, it would prove to be an impressive piece of commentators curse in the first few meters of the race.
Romain Grosjean triggers multi-car pile-up at Spa Francorchamps
The formation lap at Spa Francorchamps is one of the longest on the calendar due to the length of the 4.3-mile circuit. Drivers at the front of the pack find themselves waiting a while before everyone eventually lines up for the start sequence.
Kobayashi had overworked his brakes on the formation lap, and they had caught fire while he was stationary. Then, as the five-light sequence came on, Maldonado jumped the start.
This triggered a chain reaction as Grosjean moved across the track from ninth on the grid in an attempt to overtake Hamilton, but the Lotus driver was unsighted and the pair collided. Hamilton was lodged into the rear of Grosjean’s Lotus and was effectively pushing him along the braking zone into La Source where he collided into the back of the Sauber of Sergio Perez.
The momentum of Grosjean’s Lotus coupled with it having a full tank of fuel onboard, catapulted his car into the air and over the top of Alonso as they reached La Source.
Alonso was hit from behind by Hamilton, sending the rear of his Ferrari briefly into the air, while the McLaren collided with Kobayashi’s front suspension and eventually rested in the La Source run-off zone.
FIA bans Romain Grosjean for taking out title contenders
It was a massive accident, with four cars out on the spot and Sauber’s dream of achieving another podium after their earlier success in Malaysia up in smoke.
Grosjean was confronted by Hamilton, who gestured to the Frenchman when they both got out of the car, while Alonso was attended to by the medical crew. The Spaniard was later transported to the medical centre, where he was checked and cleared.
The FIA investigated the accident and deemed Grosjean at fault and handed him a one-race ban for the following race at the Italian Grand Prix, along with a €50,000 fine for the incident.
It was the first time a driver had been handed a ban in 18 years, with the stewards justifying it by stating he had taken out title contenders, which became a controversial topic.
Years later, Grosjean would state that he felt the ban was too harsh when speaking to Auto Hebdo: “Spa was a mistake, I accept the sanction, but I think it was much too harsh, says Grosjean. I’m not proud of it, but it’s part of the game.
“I remember sending a message to Fernando: ‘Sorry, I’m glad you’re okay’. He answered me: ‘The sanction is too severe, you will bounce back’. On the other hand, it wasn’t nice having Mark [Webber] on my back. We all make mistakes and he made a few. It was difficult.”
Button went on to win the race, but it would be Vettel who would take his third title at the end of 2012 after a closely fought battle with Alonso in the championship.