World Champions Whose Career Fell Off a Cliff After Their First Title

Winning the F1 world title is the ultimate goal of any driver. It takes years of hard work, dedication, drive, and some luck as well. However, there is a famous quote that reaching the top of the mountain is not as tough as staying on top.

The quote holds true in F1 as well as throughout the history of the sport, there have been multiple drivers that have climbed to the top, won the title, and then for some reason, they were not able to sustain the same level of performance that had brought them to the top.

Jacques Villeneuve (1997 F1 champion)

By the end of the 1997 season, Villeneuve was on his way to becoming one of the most accomplished drivers in the history of the sport. He was the 1995 Indycar champion, in 1996 he was the runner-up in his debut season and by 1997 he was an F1 World Champion.

However, Williams' downfall in 1998 coincided with Villeneuve's as well, as the Canadian did not pick up even a single race win after the 1997 season.

After the 1997 season, Villeneuve's career went into a decline as he moved to less competitive teams like BAR, Renault, and Sauber in the future and was never able to regain the glorious heights of his Williams years.

Why did he suffer such a decline? It's hard to say, but once Villeneuve found himself out of the championship reckoning with less competitive cars, he was unable to make the kind of impact that he usually did earlier in his career.

Kimi Raikkonen (2007 F1 Champion)

Kimi Raikkonen's career is one of two halves. The first half saw him as easily one of the fastest drivers on the grid. He had some breathtaking drives with McLaren through these years and this phase culminated with him winning the title in 2007 with Ferrari.

The second half saw him lose that edge, which made him an undeniable force on the grid. Post-2007, Raikkonen was still a competent F1 driver, but was he still an elite? Not really.

He lost to Felipe Massa as his teammate (in 2008), he was demolished by Fernando Alonso (in 2014) and Sebastian Vettel (from 2015-2018) in the same team.

Looking back, it did appear that Raikkonen had eased off in his career once he had won the title and it showed in his performance levels.

Keke Rosberg (1982 F1 Champion)

The father of Nico Rosberg, Keke was a charismatic figure up and down the grid during his time in F1. He was amongst the upper echelons of drivers during his time and duly won the title in 1982.

However, after his title win, things did start to unravel for the Finnish driver as he saw drivers like Nelson Piquet and Alain Prost take over from him as the gold standard in the sport. After winning his title in 1982, Keke's performances fell off a cliff and he was unable to challenge for the title ever again.

Why did that happen? It had more to do with the fact that the other drivers raised their level of professionalism to an entirely new level and Rosberg just could not keep up with it.

Russian GP axed as Mazepin’s future thrown into question

The Formula 1 has confirmed it has cancelled the Russian Grand Prix in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In a statement released late on Friday night, the F1 said it was “watching the developments in Ukraine with sadness and shock” and held extensive discussions before cancelling the event.

“The FIA F1 World Championship visits countries all over the world with a positive vision to unite people, bringing nations together,” the statement read.

“We are watching the developments in Ukraine with sadness and shock and hope for a swift and peaceful resolution to the present situation.

“On Thursday [Friday AEDT] evening Formula 1, the FIA, and the teams discussed the position of our sport, and the conclusion is, including the view of all relevant stakeholders, that it is impossible to hold the Russian Grand Prix in the current circumstances.”

The Russian Grand Prix was due to be held in Sochi on September 25.

Meanwhile, Haas Formula One team boss Guenther Steiner confirmed that his team’s Russian racer Nikita Mazepin faces an uncertain future as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Mazepin had been signed last year as part of a title sponsorship deal involving Russian potash producer Uralkali, owned by his billionaire father Dmitry Mazepin.

“Yeah, it needs to be resolved,” Steiner told reporters.

“As I said before, not everything depends from us here: https://cb01-seance-stream.tumblr.com/

https://c01streaming-turningred.tumblr.com/

https://cbo1-ennio-gratuito.tumblr.com/

“There is more than the F1 team involved, there are governments involved, so I have no idea what is coming from that side.”

The cancellation comes after reigning Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen and former champion Sebastian Vettel said on Friday it would be wrong for the Russian Grand Prix to go ahead.

Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine on Thursday, killing dozens of people in the early hours, according to the Ukrainian authorities.

Four-time champion Vettel said he had been shocked to wake up to the news and the Aston Martin driver is adamant he will not compete in the September 25 race in Sochi.

“In my personal opinion, I woke up to this morning’s news, shocked, so I don’t know,” Vettel said at a press conference on the second day of pre-season testing in Barcelona.

“I think it’s horrible to see what is happening.

“Obviously if you look at the calendar we have a race scheduled in Russia. For myself, my own opinion is I should not go, I will not go. I think it’s wrong to race in the country.”

Vettel, 34, said he was sure that there would be further discussions in the Formula One paddock.

“I’m sorry for the people, innocent people that are losing their lives, that are getting killed for stupid reasons and a very, very strange and mad leadership,” said Vettel.

“I’m sure it’s something that we will talk about, but personally I’m just so shocked and sad to see what is going on.

“So we will see going forward, but I think my decision is already made.”

Reigning champion Verstappen said he was against competing there too.

“When a country is at war, it’s not right to run there, that’s for sure,” said Verstappen.

“But what matters is not what I think, it’s the whole paddock that will decide.”

In related news, Paris will host this season’s Champions League final after Saint Petersburg was stripped of the match due to Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine, UEFA announced on Friday.

The showpiece occasion of the European club season will be played at the Stade de France on Saturday, May 28, European football’s governing body said after holding an emergency meeting in response to the crisis.

“UEFA wishes to express its thanks and appreciation to French Republic President Emmanuel Macron for his personal support and commitment to have European club football’s most prestigious game moved to France at a time of unparalleled crisis,” a statement said.

The Russian government responded by calling the decision by UEFA “a shame”.

“It is a shame that such a decision was made,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “Saint Petersburg could have provided the best possible conditions for holding this football event.” The final was supposed to be played at the Gazprom Arena in Saint Petersburg, which already hosted several matches at last year’s European Championship and at the 2018 World Cup held in Russia.

UEFA made no reference to its relationship with Gazprom, the Russian state energy giant that is a key sponsor of European football’s governing body.

It is the third year running in which UEFA has moved the Champions League final with the Covid-19 pandemic leading to the 2020 edition being switched from Istanbul to Lisbon, and then again from the Turkish city to Porto in Portugal last year.