2009 F1 Season

The 2009 Formula One World Championship, the 63rd season of FIA Formula One racing, featured the 60th World Championship, contested over 17 races from the Australian Grand Prix on March 29 to the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on November 1. This season was remarkable for the dominance of Brawn GP, a team formed from the management buyout of Honda. Jenson Button, driving for Brawn GP, clinched the Drivers’ Championship, while the team secured the Constructors’ Championship, both achieving these feats in their debut and only season. Button’s victory marked him as the tenth British driver to win the championship, and this was the first time since Graham Hill (1968) and Jackie Stewart (1969) that British drivers won consecutive championships. Sebastian Vettel, racing for Red Bull, finished as the runner-up, with Button’s teammate Rubens Barrichello in third. The season was also notable for the underperformance of McLaren and Ferrari compared to their previous successes.

Significant changes were introduced this season, including the return of slick tyres, aerodynamic modifications, and the introduction of Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS), marking some of the most substantial changes in Formula One regulations in decades. The Brawn team capitalized on these new regulations, winning six of the first seven races. Red Bull Racing emerged as a strong contender in the latter half of the season. The season was the first since 2005 where all participating teams scored World Championship points. The 2009 season also marked Mercedes-Benz’s first engine manufacturer’s title since 1998. Notable driver changes included Sebastian Vettel moving to Red Bull and several mid-season replacements due to injuries and performance issues, including Felipe Massa’s replacement at Ferrari following his accident at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The season’s calendar saw the introduction of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and the exclusion of the Canadian and French Grands Prix due to financial issues.