Part three in the qualifying analysis series of posts takes a look at the performance of Renault, Mercedes and Sauber, three mid-field teams hoping for performance gains that will take them closer to the front.

This weekend, the media cooled on the Kimi Raikkonen to Williams rumours – Raikonnen-Renault becoming the new flavour of the month and sure enough, this morning the Finn was confirmed as a Renault, or Lotus as it will be, driver next year. I actually thought Raikkonen was the wrong man for Williams as they try to pick up the team from a terrible season, anyway. However, with Renault suffering a similarly turbulent second half of the year, I wonder if the same will be in store for Lotus next year.

One from the young drivers’ test in Abu Dhabi for this week’s Caption This… as Estonia’s Kevin Korjus joins Renault or Lotus or Genii or whoever they are for the day. Here the 18-year old is in the garage ahead of hitting the track – all we need is a caption to go with it. So ladies and gentlemen, thinking caps on… Go!

Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull may have dominated this season but the power behind them certainly hasn’t had it all its own way. In fact, with two races remaining, just 29 points separate the Renault-powered teams from rival supplier Mercedes-Benz. With six cars apiece, there is plenty of time for McLaren, Mercedes GP and Force India to close the gap on a group that has become increasingly reliant on Red Bull’s dominance.

Renault have confirmed that Bruno Senna will partner Vitaly Petrov this weekend, with Nick Heidfeld left on the sidelines. However, it is not yet confirmed if it is a permanent change, a one-off along the lines of Karun Chandhok’s outing at Lotus or even a temporary move before a third driver enters the equation.

In this week’s Caption This… Renault GP seem to have found themselves yet another driver. All we need you to do is to provide the totally bone-afide picture with a rib-tickling and humerus caption. And if you’ve never commented before on Viva F1, we’d like to invite you to stop skull-king – “your heart isn’t in it” is not a valid excuse.
 

Credit: Viva F1