F1 Legend Sim/Seasons/2016

2016 F1 Season

21 races · Mercedes W07

The 2016 season brought the Mercedes team-mate rivalry to boiling point, in the most intense in-house duel since the days of Senna and Prost. Nico Rosberg planned everything meticulously to beat Lewis Hamilton once and for all.

Rosberg opened by winning the first four races and withstood Hamilton's fightback, as the Briton dominated much of the summer but suffered a crucial engine failure in Malaysia while leading. The tension even boiled over on track, with a famous collision between the pair in Spain that took both out.

At the Abu Dhabi finale, Rosberg only needed to finish third; Hamilton tried to back him into the pack by slowing the pace, but the German held on and was crowned champion. Five days later he announced his retirement, becoming the very rare champion who walks away at the top.

Drivers' Champion

Nico Rosberg

Mercedes W07

Constructors' Champion

Mercedes

21 races

See the 2016 simulation Ver en español

Key moment

"Rosberg wins the title in Abu Dhabi and retires 5 days later, the only driver to do so."

The 2016 grid, car by car

The 11 teams that raced in 2016, ordered by how good we rate the car. It is our own judgement, not an official figure: what it is worth is that the same yardstick is applied to every season since 1988, so you can compare eras.

#TeamOur ratingDrivers
1Mercedes
99
Lewis Hamilton · Nico Rosberg
2Red Bull
92
Max Verstappen · Daniel Ricciardo
3Ferrari
91
Sebastian Vettel · Kimi Räikkönen
4Williams
83
Valtteri Bottas · Felipe Massa
5Force India
82
Sergio Perez · Nico Hulkenberg
6McLaren
78
Fernando Alonso · Jenson Button
7Haas
76
Romain Grosjean · Esteban Gutierrez
8Toro Rosso
75
Carlos Sainz · Daniil Kvyat
9Renault
70
Kevin Magnussen · Jolyon Palmer
10Sauber
67
Felipe Nasr · Marcus Ericsson
11Manor
63
Pascal Wehrlein · Rio Haryanto

How 2016 actually ended

The official final standings, from Australian Grand Prix to Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. This is the real result, not the simulation above.

DriverPointsWinsPodiumsPoles
1Nico RosbergMercedes3859168
2Lewis HamiltonMercedes380101712
3Daniel RicciardoRed Bull256181
4Sebastian VettelFerrari212070
5Max VerstappenRed Bull204170
6Kimi RäikkönenFerrari186040
7Sergio PérezForce India101020
8Valtteri BottasWilliams85010

It came down to 5 points: Rosberg and Hamilton finished closer than a fourth place is worth. 4 different drivers won that year, and the final Grand Prix went to Lewis Hamilton.

Official FIA standings via Jolpica (formerly Ergast).

What if 2016 had been raced 100 times?

We took the real 2016 grid (every car with its performance and reliability, every driver with his rating) and re-ran the full 21-race championship 100 times.

DriverAvg. finishTitles
Lewis HamiltonMercedesP1.192%
Nico Rosbergreal championMercedesP1.98%
Max VerstappenRed BullP3.10%
Sebastian VettelFerrariP4.30%
Daniel RicciardoRed BullP5.30%
Kimi RäikkönenFerrariP5.40%

The engine disagrees with history: its favourite was Lewis Hamilton (92%), and Nico Rosberg only wins 8% of the time. That title was won with something a table cannot hold.

Tags

#rosberg#hamilton#mercedes#2016#W07#retirada

Year

2016

Races

21

Winning car

Mercedes W07

Navigation

← 2015: Lewis Hamilton2017: Lewis Hamilton →

What if Senna, Hamilton or Alonso had driven the 2016 championship-winning car?

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Hypotheses from 2016

Hamilton vs Rosberg 2016: the most epic teammate battle

Duel

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Drivers of 2016

Nico Rosberg

★ 1

Lewis Hamilton

★ 7

Keep reading

What we have measured about 2016 and about what decided it, with our own numbers.

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