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This weekend Formula One landed in China for the ninth Chinese Grand Prix. While the weekend began with most of the talk focused on the moral dilemma surrounding the Bahrain leg of the calendar, it certainly finished with Nico Rosberg's name on everyone's lips.
The Chinese Grand Prix was supposed to bring with it a revitalised Red Bull and a refocused McLaren team looking to brush off the rain-ruined race of Malaysia with a convincing display in Shanghai.
Below are a few points from the third round of the calendar.
Rosberg Can Finally Step Out Of His Father's Shadow
Nico Rosberg has finally done it. It may have taken him 111 races, but he has finally won his first Formula One race, and he did it in some style.
A blistering qualification saw him over half a second quicker that the nearest car, and by lap ten Rosberg looked calm and confident at the front of the track. While his driving was near-perfect, it was complemented by a fantastic car.
However, this was Rosberg's day and in the season which celebrates 30 years since his father Keke won the 1982 World Championship, Nico looked every bit the title challenger
After consistently out-performing team-mate and seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher since the latter's return to F1, Rosberg was finally able to get a particularly heavy monkey off of his back. It may have taken him 49 more races than his father to grab a maiden victory, but it will certainly taste as sweet.
Mercedes Look Quick, As Long As Four Wheels Remain On The Car
The Mercedes W03 has threatened to become a race-winning car ever since pre-season testing. There was no doubt that it had straight-line speed and it has looked competent in the corners, but tyre issues have proved the downfall for the German team until now.
Too much degradation in Australia, paired with 'not enough' degradation in Sepang was completely forgotten in China, as Rosberg (and for a small amount of time Michael Schumacher) showed that it could be third time lucky for Mercedes.
Schumacher's relative calmness when asked post-race about his loose rear wheel and subsequent retirement, suggests that he knows he has a good car under him, so long as the team can iron out the little mistakes.
Ross Brawn told us to watch out come China and very few listened, but the wily old fox knew what he was talking about. With Bahrain next on the calendar, we should expect another strong showing from Mercedes.
Rivalry Is The Spice Of Life
The Formula One standings may show Lewis Hamilton top of the tree without actually winning a race, but I wouldn't expect that to last, well not if Jenson Button has anything to say about it.
Some of the greatest rivalries have been between team-mates. The battle between Senna and Prost instantly comes to mind, and while the friendly rivalry between Hamilton and Button has almost none of the vitriol displayed between those two hall of famers, it does have all of the ingredients of a classic battle.
The moment the two McLarens managed to wriggle away from Kimi Raikkonen, it appeared the race was on for second and third position with Hamilton staring down the exhaust of Button with only a handful of laps to go. Both are fantastic drivers and their contrasting driving styles suggest that during the season we could see some excellent racing between the two.
Battle For Second Shows How Close Teams Actually Are
Two criticisms of last season were firstly how easy it was for Sebastian Vettel to romp to victory race after race, and secondly that the gap between the best and the rest was simply too far.
This season has proved to be a revelation in that respect, with the first three races being won by three different drivers. While the main talking point from China will be Nico Rosberg's impressive victory, perhaps one of the more interesting aspects was the eight driver train which formed behind him and repeatedly changed order until the end of the race.
From Kimi Raikkonen all the way back to Fernando Alonso, the order continually changed, until Raikkonen's tyres fell off of the proverbial cliff and he found himself driving backwards.
While the sight of eight drivers switching positions was entertaining, it underlined the belief that the midfield teams have come on leaps and bounds in closing the gap between themselves and the so-called front-runners. From Sergio Perez's Sauber in Malaysia to Bruno Senna's Williams in China, that gap is closing and long may it continue.
BBC Prove They Can Still Be As Impressive As Sky
This weekend marked the first live race of the BBC's schedule as we slowly creep towards the UK friendly race-times, and the Beeb proved that despite being gutted by Rupert Murdoch and Sky F1, they can still bring a certain charm to Formula One broadcasting.
The two-man grid walk of David Coulthard and Eddie Jordan may have lacked the sharpness of Martin Brundle's infamous ritual, but it was an interesting, if not necessary attempt by the BBC to shake things up.
While they may not have the millions of Sky, and certainly don't have the Sky Pad manned by visually-friendly pairing of Georgie Thompson and Anthony Davidson, the BBC can boast the precise insight and analysis of Coulthard and Jordan, as well as the unrivalled enthusiasm of the ever-impressive Jake Humphrey.
The BBC proved that you don't need to throw millions at a project to make it appealing to the public. As long you have the quality, the people will come.
Read more blogs and articles by Simon Knights here. Follow Simon Knights on Twitter @SimonKnights
