I'll set the ball rolling with a few I remember from years ago - all are F1 races, but other series are welcome:
2001 Brazilian GP Highlights
First up an exciting race and one of David Coulthard's best victories. It started with Hakkinen stalling on the grid, bringing out the safety car. On the restart Montoya launched a spectacular balls-out pass on Schumacher to take the lead. Behind. Barrichello tried to avenge his team by attacking the other Schumacher; alas, Rubens creamed into the back of him and both cars were heavily damaged. Montoya then began making a hell of a statement, rocketing off into the distance and leading by over half a minute by mid-distance. Surely nothing could stop him... until, on lap 39 he lapped Jos Verstappen's Arrows. Verstappen missed his braking point, ran into the back of Montoya and the race leader was out on the spot, both Williams having lost rear wings at the same corner. That left Coulthard leading from Schumacher, but then it started to rain. Schumacher came in for wets; Coulthard, crucially, stayed out a lap longer and so handed Schumacher the lead - but Schumacher spun, putting DC back on his tail. Coulthard then brilliantly overtook Schumacher, Hakkinen-style, as they passed a backmarker on either side. So Coulthard took a brilliant win in a thrilling race. Oh, and Heidfeld took his first podium, finishing third for Sauber.
2003 Australian GP Highlights
This was another classic which I think is often largely forgotten nowadays. The first-ever single-lap qualifying led to a mixed-up grid and an incredible opening 20 laps; all the runners starting on wet-weather tyres. Barrichello was a little over-eager and jumped the start, earning a drive-thru which was immediately rendered unimportant by him smashing into the barriers on lap 2. Safety car out, and Schumacher into the pits from the lead. That put Montoya into the lead, but he pitted when another SC came out courtesy of some of Mark Webber's never-ending bad luck at home. This left Raikkonen leading from Schumacher and an exciting duel developed as Schumacher tried to find a way past - sadly, this ended prematurely when Kimi was handed a drive-thru for speeding in the pitlane. It wasn't plain-sailing for Schumacher from then on, however; the Ferrari's barge-boards fell apart, as Martin Brundle memorably put it, "like a Meccano set that hasn't been put together properly!" Schumacher was forced to pit, putting Montoya in the lead, but with eight laps to go he spun exiting turn one. So David Coulthard, who started 11th and had at no point looked a contender, took a stealthy victory worthy of Simon Pagenaud. Montoya recovered to finish second and Kimi recovered to take third.
2004 Italian GP Highlights
Another race that started wet and dried out rapidly. Barrichello on inters had an enormous lead by the end of lap 1, but Schumacher on dries spun at the second chicane. But Rubens stayed out too long, lost the lead and then dropped down to 9th by the time he finally pitted. But then the fightback began - I always found Schumacher in this kind of form utterly compelling to watch; launching it over the kerbs, lapping much quicker than everyone, building a momentum and pressure so great that even Alonso couldn't resist it, spinning out of third on kap 40. It culminated with Schumacher passing Button on the start/finish straight just as Barrichello, who'd executed a brilliant race of his own, emerged from the pits in front of them to retake the lead. An unlikely 1-2 was secured, and Rubens was a worthy winner.
2012 Chinese GP Part 1 Part 2
This one didn't have much in the way on a battle for the lead, the two Mercedes leading away from the front row in a manner that would become all-too-familiar. They maintained their dominance throughout, Rosberg taking a perfect first victory, the only blemish being Schumacher retiring from second immediately after his first stop. But what made this one memorable was the incredible 11-car scrap for second place towards the end. It was classic Pirelli madness, marbles all over the circuit and cars sliding all over the place as their tyres wilted apparently at random. In the end Button came out on top, with Hamilton third and Raikkonen, who had run in second with seven laps to go, somehow ending up fourteenth. Cracking stuff.
2012 Abu Dhabi GP Part 1 Part 2
A really hectic race in a season of really hectic races, but this was one of my favourites. It was a madcap, Indycar-style affair with plenty of daft accidents and also plenty of sublime racecraft. Hamilton was on pole, and it looked like it would be a huge weekend for the championship with Alonso starting sixth and Vettel from the pitlane after having insufficient fuel in the car after qualifying. Hamilton led away from Raikkonen after the start as both Force Indias were involved in a first-corner pileup. Alonso demonstrated his class early on with superb overtaking moves on Webber and Maldonado, the latter ultiamtely finishing fifth after a rare sensible day. Vettel, meanwhile, was making decent progress but had already lost his front-wing endplate after tangling with Bruno Senna, not for the last time in this title run-in. On lap nine there was a nasty crash when Narain Karthikeyan (remember him?) appeared to suffer a mechanical failure right in front of Nico Rosberg, who's Mercedes was launched into the air. Fortunately neither driver was hurt. During the ensuing SC period Vettel, by now up to 13th, misjudged Daniel Ricciardo's tyre warming weaves and smashed into a polystyrene board, damaging the front wing beyond repair. So Vettel back down to last and Alonso looking good. Hamilton retained the lead at the restart and looked set for victory... but his desperately bad 2012 luck was to curse him again, out on lap 21 with a fuel pressure problem. That put Raikkonen into the lead as Vettel worked his way back up the order, into the points by lap 24 after some impressively aggressive driving. His teammate Mark Webber was having an eventful day; spinning whilst trying to overtake Maldonado (I genuinely don't think this was Pastor's fault), having a duel with Massa that left the Ferrari pointing the wrong way and finally getting tangled up in an accident involving Perez and Grosjean on lap 37. That brought out the safety car. By now Vettel had worked his way up to fourth and suddenly it looked like he might nick a podium. Raikkonen-Alonso-Button-Vettel was the top four, Kimi memorably telling his team that he knew what he was doing and demanding that they stop bothering him over the radio. When the restart came he showed that was the case, trading lap times with Alonso as the tension ramped up and holding on to take his first victory for three years. Behind them, Vettel sealed a remarkable comeback by executing an overtake on Button so good that you wouldn't believe it was the same guy who drives for Ferrari now. The world champions had shown why they were world champions, and everyone else had shown why they weren't.
So there's a few I remember. Please do post your own. I look forward to watching them.
Edited by Spillage, 23 March 2020 - 14:46.
