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It has been a turbulent few weeks for McLaren's Lewis Hamilton, as controversial incidents in Monaco and Canada have dented his 2011 title ambitions.
Hamilton has collected just eight points from the past two races, and his faltering form - in stark contrast to team-mate Jenson Button's three consecutive podiums - is reflected in the Castrol EDGE Rankings, where he is in danger of dropping out of the top five for the very first time.
In Hamilton's favour is his habit of responding to low-scoring weekends with great performances. With the FIA also introducing new rules prohibiting the changing of engine maps between qualifying and the race, it is just possible that Valencia may represent Lewis' best chance yet of securing a front row starting berth and a strong race result.
Under the Castrol EDGE Rankings system, however, F1 drivers are dropping last year's Canadian Grand Prix results, where Hamilton secured pole position and a famous race win - meaning he has a windfall points total to defend this weekend in Spain.
In contrast, Button - who lies seventh and has been closing on Hamilton in recent weeks - has a far smaller total to defend. If Button can repeat his heroics in Canada and seal victory, he may well break into the top five at Hamilton's expense.
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Lewis also has to watch out for IndyCar's Will Power, who has made a remarkable surge through the Castrol EDGE Rankings to lie sixth. Like Hamilton, Power has a large total to defend but he is scintillating form and has a very real chance of breaking into the top five for the first time.
Just behind this bunch, Britain's three-time IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti also has a chance to move up from eighth in the Rankings, should Power and Button ahead of him fail to score.
Elsewhere, a busy weekend will see racing from GP2 and GP3, where Romain Grosjean (58) and Alexander Sims (166) are the respective leaders. The IRC is in action in Ypres, Belgium, while the FIA Formula Two Championship holds its third round of the season at Spa-Francorchamps.
The Castrol EDGE Rankings is based on drivers' measurable performance over the last 12 months, including everything from their grid position to fastest laps. For further information on how the Castrol EDGE Rankings scores are calculated, Click Here.
