Best driver

A fifth title was Lewis Hamilton’s reward for an exceptional year. Yet it was not just the moments of sublime skill that defined it as much as his execution across the season. This was very much the performance of champion. When needed he could be untouchable. The qualifying laps in Singapore and in Hungary in the wet; his moves at Monza on Kimi Räikkönen, on Sebastian Vettel in Russia and a triple pass in Bahrain as well as clinical victories such as Spain and France. But crucially he was almost error-free and when on the back foot, played the long game superbly. Ninth to third in Bahrain; 14th to the win in Germany and perhaps most outstanding his recovery from 18th to second after being hit by Räikkönen on the opening lap at Silverstone. Hamilton delivered an object lesson in how to be the complete driver.

Best team

Hamilton has been full of praise for Mercedes and deservedly so. This has been their hardest fight for both titles. Out-developed mid-season when Ferrari had the quicker car, they dealt with setbacks and mistakes with extraordinary resolve and efficiency. By Singapore, they were back on the front foot and clearly performing on a higher level than the Scuderia. The team principal Toto Wolff had emailed his team after Spa urging them to greater heights and they delivered. Their joy at a fifth constructors’ title was wholly deserved. An honorable mention goes to Sauber. They built a car that was complex and aggressive in design and it took them some time to unlock its potential. When they did their boldness was rewarded with eighth place in the constructors’, in front of Toro Rosso and Williams.

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Best race

One again the streets of Baku seemed to have it all. A thrilling meeting and almost a microcosm of the season. Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen going wheel to wheel and taking one another out as part of the Dutchman’s torrid opening. Then ,with Valtteri Bottas leading after a safety car, Vettel threw caution to the wind in an attempt to pass at the restart, overcooked it into turn one and lost places, one of several unforced errors. An almost certain second became fourth and then calamity for Bottas who took a puncture on the penultimate lap. Hamilton, ever-present, inherited the win.

Best overtake

Despite the continued concern over cars not being able to close on one another, there was still glorious passing to be savoured. Hamilton and Räikkönen duelling at Monza; Vettel passing Bottas for the lead at the British GP and Bottas squeezing past Brendon Hartley through Eau Rouge. But it was Ricciardo who proved once again why he is acknowledged as one of the premier overtakers on the grid. On fresh rubber in Shanghai he charged past Hamilton and Vettel before the one that mattered. His dive up the inside at turn four past Bottas for the win was a moment to take the breath away.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Charles Leclerc had a remarkable debut season in Formula 1. Photograph: Diego Azubel/EPA

Greatest impression

Last year, while in F2, Charles Leclerc told me F1 was his dream. Before the start of his rookie season he said it was time to deliver. He did so in spades and as a result has been taken on by Ferrari for next year. It was an absolutely remarkable debut. He not only comprehensively out-qualified and out-raced his more experienced teammate, Marcus Ericsson, but did so emphatically, proving he was a class apart. The Sauber was a handful at the start of the season but as it came good so Leclerc exploited it. Sixth in Baku was a triumph, the first of 10 points-finishes. But his touch and talent were best displayed in qualifying in Brazil, when he set a faster time in intensifying rain, having been told by the team to abort the lap. Ferrari have a rare talent on their hands.

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Costliest mistake

In as season characterised by errors on behalf of Vettel and Ferrari, the German Grand Prix will haunt them. Vettel had an eight-point lead going into the race and at this point the quickest car. Hamilton had started from 14th after a hydraulic problem in qualifying. Hamilton came through the field but the win was in Vettel’s hands. He controlled the race for 50 laps until the rain began and a moment changed the complexion of the championship. The German left his braking a fraction too late going into the Sachskurve and slid off into the barriers. Hamilton went on to win and take a 17-point lead he would not relinquish.

Change for the better

Having opened with a series of high-profile errors that reached a low with a crash in practice at Monaco, Verstappen was being lectured by all and sundry to change his driving style. He insists he did not do so but mentally has made a definite progression. In Canada, he was clean and ruthless, second in France followed and then a win in Austria. But Singapore and Russia stand out. At Marina Bay, he qualified brilliantly in second and drove a mature race to take second. Sochi was a tour de force. Starting in 19th after grid penalties he scythed through the field with clinical assurance. He was up to 13th by the end of lap one and finished fifth. Five consecutive top-three finishes followed. There were still moments where a cool head deserted him: hitting Valtteri Bottas at Monza and tangling with Esteban Ocon in Brazil but it is clear his ability to evaluate and adapt with better judgment is now on a different level.

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And finally, a farewell to …

Fernando Alonso hangs up his F1 helmet but the two-times world champion has left the door open to come back. He will continue in his attempt to win the triple crown, driving for McLaren at the Indy 500 in 2019. With his Le Mans victory this season he is also in a strong position to secure the World Endurance Championship when it concludes at the 24 in La Sarthe next year.

The overly complex front wing will also take a bow, with new regulations for 2019 stipulating a wider, simpler front wing, the first step towards improving overtaking that is to be fully refined in 2021. Alongside tidying the brake duct assembly and a wider, deeper rear wing, the changes represent an almost new start for aero design and the teams are treating it as such.

With Sky’s exclusive contract, free-to-air live races will be absent next season. Channel 4 has done a deal to show the British Grand Prix live and highlights of the other 20 races but Sky will be the only broadcaster with the full season live.