The championship is hotting up, and with only six races to go, Vettel has almost got his second consecutive championship. Here, in handy table form, are the positions where each of Alonso, Button, Webber and Hamilton need to finish in order to ensure they remain in contention.
| VET | ALO | BUT/WEB | HAM | |
| 1 | 4+ | 2 | Out | |
| 2 | 7+ | 5+ | 1 | |
| 3 | 9+ | 6+ | 2+ | |
| 4 | Any | 8+ | 3+ | |
| 5 | 9+ | 4+ | ||
| 6 | Any | 5+ | ||
| 7 | 6+ | |||
| 8 | 7+ | |||
| 9 | 8+ | |||
| 10 | 9+ | |||
| 11+ | 10+ |
As you can see, Vettel needs to finish on the podium to have a chance of being declared champion. If he wins, Hamilton is out of the running and only one of Button or Webber can remain in contention (they can’t both finish second). Hamilton also needs to finish ahead of Vettel in order to reduce the gap between the pair from its current 126 points, and he must finish in the points.
Alonso, who has been showing strong form recently, is likely to prevent Vettel from winning just yet. He has, after all, won the Singapore Grand Prix twice in the three years it has been running, though last year’s win was better than his 2008 win.
Even if the championship is wrapped up, don’t think it means the fun is over. The racing this year is some of the best we have seen in the modern era. And with the BBC/Sky deal coming into effect from next season, British viewers at least should watch until the end. It might be the last chance you’ll get to watch a full F1 season if you can’t afford or don’t want Sky.
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