Castrol's World Driver Rankings website

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MOTORSPORT EXCLUSIVE: CASTROL AND AUTOSPORT LAUNCH INNOVATIVE WORLD DRIVER RANKINGS SYSTEM
F1 CHAMPION JENSON BUTTON NAMED WORLD?S BEST DRIVER AS DAVID COULTHARD REVEALS THE NEW CASTROL RANKINGS

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14 January 2010, BIRMINGHAM: Formula 1 legend David Coulthard today unveiled the Castrol Rankings for motorsport ? the world?s first driver rankings system to measure and compare the performances of every driver across the world?s major motorsport disciplines. It will, for the first time, enable fans to compare the finest racers across the full spectrum of motorsport.

Castrol has used their heritage in analysis, technology and innovation to deliver record breaking performances in sport on land, sea and in the air for more than 100 years. In partnership with leading motorsport website autosport.com, Castrol has applied the same expertise and passion they use in the development of their oils to create the Castrol Rankings ? using expert analysis and highly advanced technology to measure and rank the performance in every single race of over 2000 drivers, across 47 major motorsport series every year.

Hot on the heels of the launch of the Castrol Rankings for football, the Castrol Rankings for motorsport is a rolling system that takes into account a driver?s performances over the past 12 months ? to produce a dynamic and authoritative comparison of the world?s best drivers. Whether it?s F1, NASCAR, World Rally or IndyCar, motorsport fans and pundits around the globe can now compare their favourite drivers against each other on a weekly basis, and find the definitive answer to the question ?Who is the best driver in the world??

The Castrol Rankings is the only place where every international driver across the major motorsport disciplines can go head to head. So, for the first time ever, motorsport fans can regularly check whether NASCAR king Jimmie Johnson is out-performing world rallying?s Sebastien Loeb, or whether IndyCar ace Dario Franchitti is proving more effective than Lewis Hamilton by simply visiting www.castroldriverrankings.com. Fans can also customise the Castrol Rankings by driver series or nationality, allowing them to compare their favourite drivers.


Speaking at today?s launch, F1 legend David Coulthard said: ?The Castrol Rankings is an exciting and innovative system that brings the world of motorsport under one roof to compare the best of the best, no matter what series or championship the driver is competing in. This will help remove the doubt about which team driver combination has been consistently outperforming their rivals by providing the definitive drivers leader board.?

Commenting on Jenson Button?s lead in the Castrol Rankings, Coulthard added: ?Jenson Button had an amazing season, so I am not surprised he is at the top of the Castrol Rankings. That said, the competition in 2010 from every discipline is fierce, so the acid test will be if Jenson can still be at the summit at the end of the year.?

Castrol Senior Vice-President Mike Johnson added: ?After the phenomenal success of the Castrol Rankings for football, it was the perfect opportunity for Castrol to join forces with autosport.com to rank the performances of the best drivers across the world of motorsport. We?re excited to be offering fans a unique and extensive tool to allow them to compare their favourite drivers across 47 different disciplines. We?re sure it will fuel debate in the world of motorsport for many years to come.?

To see the full Castrol Rankings and register for weekly updates, please go to: www.castroldriverrankings.com (http://"http://www.castroldriverrankings.com")

[flamestone]

Nice PR stunt, but what a load of arbitrary crap. :?

True, really, I'd rather the oil were a little bit cheaper and all the egg heads that came up with this were cast off.

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an
















tici
















pating :tilt:

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To see the full Castrol Rankings and register for weekly updates, please go to:

www.castroldriverrankings.com (http://"www.castroldriverrankings.com")

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To see the full Castrol Rankings and register for weekly updates, please go to: www.castroldriverrankings.com (http://"http://www.castroldriverrankings.com")

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To see the full Castrol Rankings and register for weekly updates, please go to: www.castroldriverrankings.com (http://"http://www.castroldriverrankings.com")

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www.castroldriverrankings.com (http://"http://www.castroldriverrankings.com/")

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VETTEL MAKES CASTROL DRIVER RANKINGS HISTORY
GERMAN DRIVER STAYS AT NUMBER ONE FOR RECORD-BREAKING 29th WEEK

12th October 2010: Sebastian Vettel?s dominant Japanese Grand Prix victory at Suzuka helped the German to make Castrol Driver Rankings history as he remained in the number one spot for a record-breaking 29th consecutive week.
Vettel led the race from pole position and was never realistically threatened by Mark Webber (2nd) as he led the Australian in a one-two finish for the Red Bull squad that increased both drivers? World Championship chances. His 29th week at number one broke the record he previously shared with world champion Jenson Button.
Vettel?s current score of 24,243 is also the highest achieved in Castrol Driver Rankings history and helped him maintain his advantage over Webber and World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb (3rd).
Fernando Alonso was the only mover in the top 10 this week, his podium finish in Japan helping him to overhaul Lewis Hamilton for fourth in the Castrol Driver Rankings.

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Kamui Kobayashi?s entertaining run to seventh spot earned the Sauber driver a nine-place rise to 59th and made him the biggest climber in the top 100. Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher (42nd) who finished one spot ahead of Kobayashi in his Mercedes, gained six positions.
By contrast, Renault driver Robert Kubica (13th) lost a wheel while lying second early on and swapped places with NASCAR ace Kyle Busch (12th). Timo Glock (152nd) did even worse, slipping 33 places after spending half the race behind the Hispania of Sakon Yamamoto (576th). That dropped him behind his Virgin team-mate Lucas di Grassi (148th).
Tony Stewart (23rd) gained a spot by winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Fontana whilst Kasey Kahne (33rd) was the big gainer as he made up five places by finishing fourth. Less successful was Kansas winner Greg Biffle (36th) who retired early on due to an engine failure and slipped three spots.
Mikhail Aleshin (139th) wrapped up the Formula Renault 3.5 title at Barcelona and climbed 28 spots, despite failing to win either race. Victories went to his title rivals Esteban Guerrieri (113th) and Daniel Ricciardo (103rd) who gained 16 and 39 places respectively.
Jason Plato (191st) gained four spots after wrapping up the British Touring Car Championship at Brands Hatch. Arena Ford drivers Tom Onslow-Cole (235th) and Tom Chilton (198th) were the big losers, dropping 17 and 12 places respectively while Andrew Jordan?s victory in the final race of the season moved him up 21 places to 408th.
About the Castrol Rankings: Castrol has used its heritage in analysis, technology and innovation to deliver record breaking performances in sport on land, sea and in the air for more than 100 years. In partnership with leading motorsport website autosport.com, Castrol has applied the same expertise and passion it uses in the development of its oils to create the Castrol Rankings ? using expert analysis and highly advanced technology to measure and rank the performance in every single race of over 2000 drivers, across 47 major motorsport series every year.
Hot on the heels of the launch of the Castrol Rankings for football, the Castrol Rankings for motorsport is a rolling system that takes into account a driver?s performances over the past 12 months ? to produce a dynamic and authoritative comparison of the world?s best drivers. Whether it?s F1, NASCAR, World Rally or IndyCar, motorsport fans and pundits around the globe can now compare their favourite drivers against each other on a weekly basis, and find the definitive answer to the question ?Who is the best driver in the world??

To see the full Castrol Rankings and register for weekly updates, please go to: http://www.castroldriverrankings.com

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VETTEL?S CASTROL DRIVER RANKINGS LEAD
SLASHED IN KOREA

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ENGINE FAILURE ALLOWS WEBBER TO CLOSE IN ON RED BULL TEAM-MATE
26th October 2010: Sebastian Vettel?s late engine failure not only cost him victory in last weekend?s Korean Grand Prix, it also put his hopes of finishing the year on top of the Castrol Driver Rankings at serious risk.
Vettel, who had led the whole race before his retirement, was defending a maximum score from the corresponding event last year, and therefore suffered a massive reduction in his Castrol Driver Rankings points, allowing his Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber to slash the gap to the German.
Despite Webber spinning himself ? and Nico Rosberg ? out of contention early on, he was only defending a 17th place finish from last year?s corresponding race and so lost virtually nothing in terms of his Castrol Driver Rankings score. That means he is now considerably closer to Vettel than a week ago.
With Vettel failing to complete the race, a points finish for Webber would have taken him into the Castrol Driver Rankings top spot for the first time and ended his team-mate?s stint at number one. Instead Vettel extended his record run to a 31st consecutive week.
Sebastien Loeb?s win on Rally Spain allowed the World Rally champion to cement his third place in the Castrol Driver Rankings ahead of Fernando Alonso (4th), who took his Ferrari to victory in Korea following Red Bull?s self-destruction.
Lewis Hamilton?s runner-up spot behind Alonso kept the McLaren driver in fifth. However Will Power (6th) has reduced the margin with his driving for Ford Performance Racing in the V8 Supercar Championship at Surfers Paradise.
The closest battle in the top 10 is for seventh place with reigning F1 world champion Jenson Button (8th) just a handful of points behind NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson (7th) following the latter?s fifth place at Martinsville behind his title rival Denny Hamlin (11th).
Sauber F1 driver Kamui Kobayashi (49th) was the biggest climber in the top 100 as he finished eighth in Korea and made up 10 places, while Mercedes? Michael Schumacher (34th) climbed eight spots after equalling his season?s best result of fourth.
Jarno Trulli (107th) was less successful, dropping 17 places after hitting his Lotus team-mate Heikki Kovalainen (88th) after an early switch from wet to intermediate tyres. Kimi Raikkonen (122nd) suffered even more, with the former F1 champion crashing his Citroen on the shakedown stage for Rally Spain, missing the rally and falling 26 spots.
To see the full Castrol Rankings and register for weekly updates, please go to: www.castroldriverrankings.com

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VETTEL OUT TO PROTECT CASTROL DRIVER RANKINGS ADVANTAGE
GERMAN F1 ACE PROTECTS SLENDER LEAD WITH TWO ROUNDS TO GO

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3rd November 2010: Sebastian Vettel will attempt to protect his status as the number one driver in the Castrol Driver Rankings at the Brazilian Grand Prix. With only two races to go it is critical, now more than ever, that he holds his nerve if he wants to finish in first place.
The German has held the top spot for a record-breaking 32 weeks, but is coming under increasing pressure from his Red Bull Formula 1 team-mate Mark Webber (2nd), championship leader Fernando Alonso (4th) and World Rally champion Sebastien Loeb (3rd).
All three of Vettel?s rivals have a realistic hope of ending the year as the Castrol Driver Rankings number one, making it a four-way scrap over the remaining three events that they will be involved in; the Brazilian and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix as well as Rally GB.
With no Formula 1 or World Rally Championship action and the IndyCar season having drawn to a close, the NASCAR Sprint Cup was the main source of interest for the Castrol Driver Rankings last weekend.
Jimmie Johnson?s seventh place at Talladega dropped him to an all-time low eighth spot behind F1 World Champion Jenson Button (7th). Johnson?s hopes of ending the year as the top NASCAR driver now rest on him being able to beat Kevin Harvick (10th), Denny Hamlin (11th) and Kyle Busch (12th), all of whom closed in on his score with their finishes at the Alabama oval.
The biggest mover in the Castrol Rankings top 100 was polesitter Juan Pablo Montoya (32nd), who made up six spots after one of his strongest oval races to date that resulted in a third-placed finish. Equalling Montoya?s six-place jump was Bruno Spengler (48th), who finished third in the DTM race at Adria and re-took the series lead from Paul di Resta (46th). Double champion Timo Scheider won the race from 15th on the grid in his Audi and reversed a recent downward trend to haul himself up three spots to 62nd ? only one place behind F1 driver Nico Hulkenberg.
The biggest loser in the top 100 was World Touring Car champion Gabriele Tarquini (79th), who threw away a victory at Okayama last weekend by driving off a wet track and into the tyre barriers, in doing so he lost his chance of retaining his world title and dropped eight places.
A DNF for Britain?s Andy Priaulx (83rd) lost him six spots while Yvan Muller (75th) increased his championship lead and is now the highest-ranked WTCC driver. The Frenchman?s Chevrolet team-mate Rob Huff (80th) and BMW?s Augusto Farfus (89th) won a race each and moved up three and one places respectively. Colin Turkington, who finished second in race two, gained 135 places moving up to 446th.
About the Castrol Rankings: Castrol has used its heritage in analysis, technology and innovation to deliver record breaking performances in sport on land, sea and in the air for more than 100 years. In partnership with leading motorsport website autosport.com, Castrol has applied the same expertise and passion it uses in the development of its oils to create the Castrol Rankings ? using expert analysis and highly advanced technology to measure and rank the performance in every single race of over 2000 drivers, across 47 major motorsport series every year.
Hot on the heels of the launch of the Castrol Rankings for football, the Castrol Rankings for motorsport is a rolling system that takes into account a driver?s performances over the past 12 months ? to produce a dynamic and authoritative comparison of the world?s best drivers. Whether it?s F1, NASCAR, World Rally or IndyCar, motorsport fans and pundits around the globe can now compare their favourite drivers against each other on a weekly basis, and find the definitive answer to the question ?Who is the best driver in the world??
To see the full Castrol Rankings and register for weekly updates, please go to: www.castroldriverrankings.com

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Vettel stays on top of Castrol Driver Rankings

Sebastian Vettel cemented his position at the top of the Castrol Driver Rankings with a superb series of performances throughout October that helped increase his advantage over his Red Bull Formula 1 team-mate Mark Webber. With just one Grand Prix remaining, only Webber, Fernando Alonso, and World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb can now prevent him finishing the year as the world?s number one ranked driver.

Who was the star performer in the Castrol Driver Rankings during October ? what was behind their performance?
F1 ace Sebastian Vettel picked up the Castrol EDGE Performer of the Month award for October by virtue of his performances at the Japanese and Korean Grands Prix. The German achieved pole position for both events and won at Suzuka in dominant fashion to consolidate the Castrol Driver Rankings number one spot that he has now held for 33 consecutive weeks. Sebastien Loeb, Fernando Alonso, Denny Hamlin and Jimmie Johnson are the top five scorers for October.

The F1 championship is tight but Vettlel is currently trailing Mark Webber and Fernando Alonso. Why is he still out at the front of the Castrol Driver Rankings?
The Castrol Driver Rankings measures performances over the past 52 weeks, meaning that all of the F1 races held in 2010 so far plus last year?s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix contribute to the respective scores of both Vettel and Alonso?s. In that time both have won five Grands Prix while Vettel has edged his rival by nine pole positions to two. The German has also led 255 laps more than Alonso (approximately four whole race distances), contributing to his higher position in the Castrol Driver Rankings.

What results are required for Sebastian Vettel not to win the Castrol Driver Rankings?
As Vettel won last year?s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, anything less than a repeat result will ensure that his current score decreases next week. If his Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber wins at the Yas Marina circuit with Vettel outside the top five, it is the Australian who will take over at the top of the Castrol Driver Rankings. If both fail to finish however, the door will be left open for either Fernando Alonso or Sebastien Loeb to go top if either of them can win their respective events.

Sebastien Loeb is widely considered one of the best drivers of the last decade. So why is he still behind the top F1 drivers?
Loeb has won seven of the 12 World Championship rallies he has contested over the past 52 weeks, but doesn?t usually dominate them in a manner that would gain him maximum Castrol Driver Rankings points.
For example, he has often backed off towards the end of the opening day of gravel rallies in order to avoid running first on the road the following day and sweeping the loose gravel away for his rivals. This has lost him potential fastest stage times on numerous occasions.



Jimmie Johnson?s seventh place at Talladega dropped him to an all-time low eighth spot in the Castrol Driver Rankings. Is his place as top ranked NASCAR driver still assured?
With two rounds of the NASCAR Sprint Cup remaining, Johnson?s status as the top NASCAR racer is under serious threat and his score will drop unless he can match or better his win and fifth place finish from the corresponding races last year.
Both Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin, who leads the championship, are in close contention to beat Johnson. Neither driver performed as well as Johnson at Phoenix and Homestead last year and with these results about to drop out of the 52 week period both drivers have a great opportunity to improve their overall position if they can produce better performances in this year?s races. Harvick and Hamlin will further boost their chances of beating Johnson if they opt to enter the supporting Nationwide and Truck Series races, as both also count for Castrol Driver Rankings points.
www.castroldriverrankings.com

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VETTEL TO END YEAR AS CASTROL DRIVER
RANKINGS NUMBER ONE
GERMAN CLINCHES F1 CROWN AND SECURES CASTROL DRIVER RANKINGS TOP SPOT
16th November 2010: Sebastian Vettel will end 2010 on top of the Castrol Driver Rankings after his Abu Dhabi Grand Prix win helped him to clinch the Formula 1 world title and become, at 23 years old, the youngest champion in the sport?s history.
Despite having never headed the F1 points table before last Sunday, the Red Bull driver has been on top of the Castrol Driver Rankings for the past 34 weeks, confirming his status as the best-performing driver in the world over the past 12 months.
Vettel?s victory in Abu Dhabi from pole position was his fifth of the year and increased his advantage in the Castrol Driver Rankings over Webber while Sebastien Loeb (3rd), Fernando Alonso (4th) and Lewis Hamilton (5th) all retained their top five positions.
Loeb, who ended his season with victory on Rally GB, began the weekend with a chance of taking the number one spot, but needed to rely on disaster befalling both Vettel and Webber to do so. In the end it was Alonso who had a disaster, finishing down in seventh in Abu Dhabi.
A strong drive to ninth place from Jaime Alguersuari (47th) at the Yas Marina circuit gained the Toro Rosso driver nine spots while Robert Kubica?s (14th) clever tyre strategy netted him fifth place and ensured he climbed two spots in the Castrol Driver Rankings.
The biggest loser in the top 100 was Sauber?s Kamui Kobayashi (62nd), who dropped 10 places. Outside the top 100, Kimi Raikkonen (178th) fared even worse losing not only his Rally GB score from 2009, but also that from last year?s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. These changes saw the Finn drop 20 Castrol Driver Rankings spots, in spite of his eighth place finish in the Welsh forests.
Carl Edwards (17th) broke a 70-race winless streak in the NASCAR Sprint Cup at Phoenix, gaining the Roush Fenway Ford man three places. There were no position changes for title contenders Jimmie Johnson (8th) and Denny Hamlin (11th) with the latter having only one race left to overtake Kevin Harvick and gain a place in the Castrol Driver Rankings top 10.
iSport driver Davide Valsecchi (43rd) is likely to end 2010 as the highest ranked GP2 driver after victory in the last race of the season at Yas Marina gained him three places. His team-mate Oliver Turvey?s maiden pole position made him the biggest climber in the top 100 as he rose 10 places to 59th, while Sergio Perez (67th) won the other race.
Mark Winterbottom (111th) gained 21 places after taking a V8 Supercar win at Symmons Plains. Craig Lowndes (153rd) won the other and climbed 15 spots while a podium finish for Paul Dumbrell (294th) ? his first for nine years ? moved the veteran up 29 places. Holden Racing Team?s Will Davison (399th) was the big loser, dropping 33 spots after failing to finish better than 22nd.
About the Castrol Rankings: Castrol has used its heritage in analysis, technology and innovation to deliver record breaking performances in sport on land, sea and in the air for more than 100 years. In partnership with leading motorsport website autosport.com, Castrol has applied the same expertise and passion it uses in the development of its oils to create the Castrol Rankings ? using expert analysis and highly advanced technology to measure and rank the performance in every single race of over 2000 drivers, across 47 major motorsport series every year.
Hot on the heels of the launch of the Castrol Rankings for football, the Castrol Rankings for motorsport is a rolling system that takes into account a driver?s performances over the past 12 months ? to produce a dynamic and authoritative comparison of the world?s best drivers. Whether it?s F1, NASCAR, World Rally or IndyCar, motorsport fans and pundits around the globe can now compare their favourite drivers against each other on a weekly basis, and find the definitive answer to the question ?Who is the best driver in the world??

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FIVE-STAR JOHNSON IS CASTROL DRIVER RANKINGS TOP NASCAR PERFORMER
JOHNSON RE-WRITES HISTORY BOOKS BY SECURING FIFTH STRAIGHT SPRINT CUP TITLE
23rd November 2010: Jimmie Johnson (8th) made history yet again last weekend as he clinched a record fifth straight Sprint Cup title at Homestead and assured himself of finishing the year as NASCAR?s top driver in the Castrol Driver Rankings.
Johnson recovered from some slow pitstops to finish second in his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, which was enough to make sure that he beat rivals Denny Hamlin (12th) and Kevin Harvick (10th) to the championship, in order to cement his eighth place in the Castrol Driver Rankings.
Johnson?s result makes him the USA?s top driver of 2010 while Harvick hung onto his 10th spot in the Castrol Driver Rankings after finishing third at Homestead. Hamlin, who was never a factor after qualifying poorly, dropped to 12th behind Ferrari Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa (11th).
Carl Edwards (13th) made it back-to-back wins and secured a four-place rise to 13th as he passed Robert Kubica (15th), Kyle Busch (14th), Helio Castroneves (16th) and Nico Rosberg (17th). Aric Almirola (393rd) had an even bigger rise, taking a career-best fourth place and making up 69 spots as RPM?s gamble of giving him Kasey Kahne?s (39th) old seat paid off.
Edoardo Mortara (75th) re-wrote history by becoming the first man to win the Macau F3 Grand Prix in successive years and cemented his status as the category?s highest-ranked driver by retaining his 75th place. The Euro Series champion is now only one spot ahead of British title winner Jean-Eric Vergne (76th), who finished seventh on his Macau debut.
New World Touring Car champion Yvan Muller (72nd) did not win either race at the Macau season finale, the victories instead going to his Chevrolet team-mate Rob Huff (77th) and to Zengo-Dension SEAT driver Norbert Michelisz (169th). The latter became the first Hungarian to win an FIA World Championship race and moved up 54 places.
BMW drivers Andy Priaulx (86th) and Augusto Farfus (97th) both had poor weekends compared to 2009 and lost four and ten places respectively as a result. The Brazilian?s drop was the largest in the Castrol Driver Rankings top 100.
Paul Dumbrell (249th) ended a ten year wait for his first V8 Supercar victory at Sandown and the Rod Nash Ford driver then added his maiden pole position the following day to cap a 45-place rise. Championship leader James Courtney (111th) won the second race to gain nine places while fellow title contender Craig Lowndes (165th) had a dismal weekend and dropped 12 spots.

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6th December 2010
VETTEL CROWNED CHAMPION OF CASTROL DRIVER
RANKINGS
With the 2010 motorsport season having reached its conclusion, Sebastian Vettel has been officially
crowned champion of the Castrol Driver Rankings. At the top of the table Vettel has fought off
challenges from Sebastien Loeb as well as the other title contenders in the Formula 1 championship.
Australia topped the Castrol Nations? Driver Rankings and, throughout the year, there have been some
fantastic performances from drivers around the world.

HOW THEY FINISHED - END OF SEASON 2010 CASTROL DRIVER RANKINGS - TOP 20
Source: www.castroldriverrankings.com
*Data correct as of December 6, 2010


RANK DRIVER COUNTRY SERIES
CASTROL DRIVER
RANKINGS POINTS
1 SEBASTIAN VETTEL GERMANY F1 24,200
2 MARK WEBBER AUSTRALIA F1 22,079
3 S?BASTIEN LOEB FRANCE WRC 21,754
4 FERNANDO ALONSO SPAIN F1 20,467
5 LEWIS HAMILTON GREAT BRITAIN F1 19,217
6 WILL POWER AUSTRALIA INDYCAR, V8 SUPERCARS 17,858
7 JENSON BUTTON GREAT BRITAIN F1 17,006
8 JIMMIE JOHNSON UNITED STATES SPRINT CUP, GRANDAM 16,308
9 DARIO FRANCHITTI GREAT BRITAIN
INDYCAR, V8 SUPERCARS,
GRANDAM 15,554
10 KEVIN HARVICK UNITED STATES
SPRINT CUP, NATIONWIDE,
NASCAR TRUCKS 15,531
11 FELIPE MASSA BRAZIL F1 14,918
12 DENNY HAMLIN UNITED STATES
SPRINT CUP, NATIONWIDE,
NASCAR TRUCKS 14,467
13 CARL EDWARDS UNITED STATES SPRINT CUP, NATIONWIDE 13,957
14 KYLE BUSCH UNITED STATES
SPRINT CUP, NATIONWIDE,
NASCAR TRUCKS 13,798
15 ROBERT KUBICA POLAND F1 13,642
16 H?LIO CASTRONEVES BRAZIL INDYCAR, V8 SUPERCARS 13,639
17 NICO ROSBERG GERMANY F1 13,505
18 SCOTT DIXON NEW ZEALAND
INDYCAR, V8 SUPERCARS,
GRANDAM 13,361
19 SEBASTIEN OGIER FRANCE WRC, IRC 13,108
20 JARI-MATTI LATVALA FINLAND WRC 12,859


OVERALL
Sebastian Vettel only won the Formula 1 Drivers? Championship by four points, why did he win the
Castrol Driver Rankings by a much greater margin?
The Formula 1 World Championship awards the same points at each race and pays no attention to
whether a driver has dominated a weekend or merely snatched a victory at the death.
The Castrol Driver Rankings is different and Vettel?s 37 weeks at number one are testament to how well
he has performed on many weekends when he did not win, but still proved to be the fastest driver ontrack.
Vettel led the Castrol Driver Rankings for 37 weeks throughout the Formula 1 season yet only led the
championship standings at the end of the final race, why was that?

This was primarily due to Vettel?s qualifying form that netted him twice as many pole positions as anyone
else. The Castrol Driver Rankings rates the performance of a driver over a whole race or rally weekend,
rather than just awarding points based on finishing positions. For example, a driver scores more points if
he starts a race from pole and leads all the way to the chequered flag rather than fighting his way
through the field from a lowly grid position.
Whereas Vettel was matched by Fernando Alonso(4th) for wins and podium finishes, he blew the Ferrari
driver away in terms of qualifying form and laps led. He edged out his Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber
as well.

How does Sebastian Vettel?s overall performance compare with Formula 1 drivers from previous years?
If you applied the same method of analysis used in the Castrol Driver Rankings to the two previous
Formula 1 World Champions Vettel?s season-ending score of 24,200 is the highest. It compares
favourably with Jenson Button?s 21,828 from last year and Lewis Hamilton?s 22,660 from 2008.
Sebastien Loeb won eight of the 13 rounds of the WRC season in 2010 to clinch a record-extending
seventh consecutive title. What would it take for a non-F1 driver to win the Castrol Driver Rankings?
Not a lot. Sebastien Loeb finished the year third in the Castrol Driver Rankings, but would have ended up
at number one had Sebastian Vettel failed to finish one of the five grands prix he won and Mark
Webber (2nd) had taken just one less podium finish. If Loeb wins 10 or more rallies next year ? as he did in
2008 ? then it will be difficult for any F1 driver to keep him from the top spot.

CASTROL NATIONS? DRIVER RANKINGS
HOW THEY FINISHED - END OF SEASON 2010 CASTROL NATIONS? DRIVER RANKINGS - TOP 10
RANK COUNTRY
CASTROL DRIVER
RANKINGS POINTS
1 AUSTRALIA 39,937
2 GERMANY 37,705
3 GREAT BRITAIN 36,223
4 FRANCE 34,862
5 UNITED STATES 31,839
6 SPAIN 31,686
7 BRAZIL 28,557
8 FINLAND 23,764
9 NORWAY 18,820
10 ITALY 18,367
Source: www.castroldriverrankings.com

*Data correct as of December 2, 2010
How is the Castrol Nations? Driver Rankings league calculated and how did Australia finish on top?

The Castrol Nations? Driver Rankings is calculated by adding together the scores of a country?s two
highest-ranked drivers.

Australia finished on top in 2010 thanks to the performances of Mark Webber and Will Power (6th),
ranked second and seventh in the Castrol Driver Rankings, the Australian duo knocked Great Britain off
the top spot in September. Germany?s pairing of Sebastian Vettel (1st) and Nico Rosberg (17th) did
enough to relegate Britain?s team of Jenson Button (7th) and Lewis Hamilton (5th) to third.
You?d expect the USA to come out on top due to the number of drivers they have in the Castrol Driver
Rankings.

Why did they finish the season in fifth place?
Because the Castrol Nations? Driver Rankings only looks for the two highest-ranked drivers from any given
country, the USA has found itself restricted to fifth place in 2010. Their two highest-ranked drivers are
NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson (8th) and his title rival Kevin Harvick (10th).
The sheer number of American drivers in the top 50 means that the USA?s position is far less likely to go
down over the coming years than that of other nations.

With seven drivers in this year?s Formula 1 World Championship (including the World Champion) and
such a strong motorsport heritage, is it a surprise that Germany did not top the Castrol Nations? Driver
Rankings table?

Yes. Sebastian Vettel?s status as the number one driver in the Castrol Driver Rankings gave Germany a
great foundation to challenge for the top spot, and dropped scores by Jenson Button early in the year
did allow them to replace Great Britain at the top of the Castrol Nations? Driver Rankings for two weeks
in May.

However, with Germany?s second highest-ranked driver, Nico Rosberg, not making it higher than 14th at
any point in 2010, they have had to play second fiddle to Australia, which has had Mark Webber and
Will Power both solidly in the top 10 all year.
Single performance

Who had the best single Castrol Driver Rankings performance of the year?
Unexpectedly it was not a Formula 1 driver, nor a World Rally Championship star. Instead it was Mike
Rockenfeller (63rd), Romain Dumas (170th) and Timo Bernhard (168th), who scored 2040 points each for
winning the Le Mans 24 Hours in June in an Audi R15-plus.
Fernando Alonso was next up, netting 2026 points for his Singapore Grand Prix win while Sebastien Loeb
scored 1992 on seven separate occasions during the year. Sebastian Vettel?s highest score was 1868,
which he managed four times.

Predictions Will this year?s strong performance restrict Vettel?s chances of leading the Castrol Driver Rankings in
2011?
Probably not. Vettel won only five grands prix in 2010 ? a relatively small amount compared to recent
world champions ? and so has a great opportunity to retain his number one spot throughout 2011. His
single points finish from the first two races of this year, for example, will be easy to improve on provided
his Red Bull holds together and proves competitive. Plus, he is guaranteed to hang onto his top spot until
at least the second week of March, when the F1 season kicks off.

To see the full Castrol Rankings and register for weekly updates, please go to:
www.castroldriverrankings.com