Mat Coch writes:

There are a number of ways to start a Formula One season, however, there are few worse than a double disqualification. Following the Australian Grand Prix both Saubers were excluded when it was ruled the rear wing was illegal. It wasn't performance enhancing apparently, though that's not the point. A double points finish was stripped from the team.

It was an innocent and embarrassing mistake yet one which simply shouldn't happen in Formula One. When millions of dollars of prize money are at stake such an academic error could prove very expensive. Ultimately it cost the team ten points, whilst handing Toro Rosso and Force India points they shouldn't otherwise have had.

All this had repercussions as the season progressed, with Toro Rosso ending the year just three points adrift of Sauber, which was fifteen behind Force India. Had the Swiss team kept those ten points from Australia the season could have been very different.

Politics and regulations aside, the Australian Grand Prix did herald the arrival of Sergio Perez and a driving style which would make him one to watch throughout the season. Nursing his car throughout the race he managed to make the distance with just a single pit stop while his rivals made multiple visits for fresh tyres. It was a controlled, mature drive, well beyond the expectations many had of the Mexican rookie. What's more he finished ahead of teammate and cult hero Kamui Kobayashi, the highly rated Japanese driver capable of just eighth place.

Unfortunately for Perez it was perhaps the highlight of his year, his next best finish was seventh in the rain-affected British Grand Prix. However, he still managed to amass fourteen points from a season which was just seventeen races long for him, two fewer than his teammate.

A frightening crash in qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix forced him out for the weekend, before withdrawing from the Canadian Grand Prix after Friday practice. That Perez emerged largely unscathed from the accident, which had remarkable similarities to Karl Wendlinger's 1994 crash (also in a Sauber) is testament to the strict safety measures employed by Formula One. He was replaced by Spanish veteran Pedro de la Rosa, who failed to set the world alight.

It is little wonder that Perez is under contract to Ferrari, or that the Italian team keeps a close eye on its protege. Backed by Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim the youngster has potential, with some already linking him to a possible berth at Maranello for 2013.

Across the other side of the garage Kobayashi had a successful season though seemed somewhat short of his best. Certainly he didn't display the form which endeared him to fans in 2010, though he still managed nine points finishes and twelfth in the standings. Ironically, he was most impressive in Monaco, where he charged from the midfield to fifth in one of the year's more dramatic races. Sadly, as far as the TV cameras are concerned, his drive was overlooked in favour of the melee at the front as the first three squabbled for the lead, and the antics of Lewis Hamilton who had a particularly belligerent race.

Overall I believe the team acquitted itself well enough, when 2010 is considered. Having recently returned to Peter Sauber after its tenure as BMW, the team lacked investment with a livery bereft of sponsorship logos. So 2011 then was a positive, even though it finished half way down the pecking order, as it showed progress on the back of a bleak return season.

With little investment in 2010 hopes for 2011 had to be contained, and in truth the team just about hit its target. With Telmex onboard thanks to Sergio Perez and Carlos Slim, investment in the team has increased and that in turn should lead to a brighter 2012.

For a season in which it was treading water and planning for the future the team did itself proud. Fifth place in Monaco was a mighty result, and that it scored in five of the last six races of the year demonstrated that it stayed on pace with those around it. It's a promising sign for the team which almost dropped out of Formula One at the end of 2009, and hopefully puts the team in a good position for an even stronger 2012.