Sébastien Buemi wrapped up his third season with Toro Rosso at Interlagos. The Swiss has been lucky enough to be given time to gather experience and prove his worth – an opportunity not so many drivers get, especially in the Red Bull young driver program.
He scored 15 points in 2011 and made some improvements but was still beaten by his less experienced teammate Jaime Alguersuari… one could argue, though, that Buemi has had his fair share of bad luck.
Season review
In 2010, Buemi had scored 8 points and taken 16th in the final drivers’ standings. His goal for 2011 was to improve from there.
In Australia, he qualified in 10th place and finished the race in 8th position, thus scoring two points.
Nonetheless, bad luck affected him in Malaysia, where he lost a piece of bodywork in Free Practice. He started the race from 12th on the grid and finished 13th. In China, he took his best grid position of the year – 9th – but only took 14th in the race.
He scored more points at Monaco and Montréal. A puncture forced him to retire from the British Grand Prix. His best performance of the year arguably came in Hungary: from 23rd on the grid he drove his way through the field to finish at an impressive 8th place. He bagged a few more points in Italy and Korea.
Bad luck then hit him badly in the final part of the season. A wheel nut problem in Japan, engine problems in India and hydraulic problems in Abu Dhabi lost him points.
Conclusion
Sébastien Buemi did pretty well in 2011 but could have done even better had Lady Luck been on his side. Both he and his teammate raced all season under pressure as they were at risk of losing their seat, while Daniel Ricciardo was waiting in the wings.
The Swiss lost out to Alguersuari in the standings but is still hopeful of retaining his drive for a further season.
Highs
— Improved
— Consistent
— Gains many places in the opening laps
Lows
— Scored less points than his teammate
— Hit by bad luck
— Question mark against his name
Nextgen-Auto.com marks:
-Olivier Ferret : 10/20
-D.Thys : 15/20
-Sandrine Bouchard : 13/20
-Jean-Michel Setbon : 11/20
-Average mark on the forum Nextgen-Auto.com: 12/20
- Note globale : 61/100