F1: Red Bull charges as Ferrari prances

Everyone loves the Istanbul Park track. But only the track. The car parks are a mud bath, the journey from the city can take two hours in steaming hot traffic jams as racegoers add to the usual chaotic roads, the in-circuit food is even worse than at Sepang - and one would have thought that next to impossible. And the vacancies in the grandstands are testament to the fact that F1 has not taken off in Turkey: in town, despite the downpour of foreign media and teams and sponsors creating a deluge of PR events, the population seem largely unconcerned.

Turkey is not a rich country: it is ironic, given the fact that this was the weekend that the greatest opponent of Turkey's entry to the EU, Greece, was once more the focus of talk of an economic rescue package to prevent its economy from total collapse. Ticket prices are, simply, too high for the vast majority of Turks. That is often presented as a major issue but in reality, it's just the same in almost every country F1 visits including its spiritual homes of the UK and Italy but especially in the developing countries that have been the focus of recent development. Really, what proportion of Indians are expected to be able to afford to go to next year's inaugural GP.

And it's not a question of absolute numbers: China's GP was also under-subscribed.

But when the lights go out, none of that matters.

In Istanbul, the first corner comes up very, very soon for the front runners. And it's a bottleneck in the standard Tilke tradition. It's almost as if weeding out part of the field before the first straight is an objective of his designs. But at Istanbul, the first corner is not as vicious as, say, Sepang and wheel to wheel racing, even overtaking, is possible even before the cars at the back of the grid have cleared the starting line.

Like so many Tilke tracks, the finish line is far behind the start line, close to the exit after a challenging corner onto the start-finish straight, preventing a drag-race to the line. And, like so many of his designs, the pit-lane entrance is almost part of the track, almost on the racing line.

These are some of the factors that define the race, almost as much as the phenomenal Turn 8, a prosaic name for an incredible corner. Fast, undulating and almost four corners in one, drivers hang onto the steering wheel as their heads and organs are pushed sideways under a force of 4.5G.

But, ultimately, three things decided the result of the race: Vettel's start, tyre strategy and pit-lane problems.

For much of the race, it looked as if the result would be determined by Vettel's hare like pace (it was) and the Drag Reduction System. For sure, DRS provided endless fun but, unlike in the previous races, it ultimately hampered the proper development of the race. It provided pointless overtaking and risk in a tight part of the track and allowed slower cars to overtake those who were conserving the fragile tyres.

That was Button's downfall as his team made a bad call on tyre changes. Mid-way through the race, it looked as if Button's three stop strategy was going to work out well. But in the last five laps, he was losing two or three seconds per lap against those around him. Rosberg walked past Button with three laps to go and finished almost ten seconds ahead; and less than a second ahead of Heidfeld. Worse: Button was always going quickly when the tyre change came; had the team left him out for five or six laps longer on each set, then the three-stop strategy would have stood a better chance because the last set would not have had to do that final, disastrous, ten lap stint.

Star of the show was Japanese driver Kamui Kobayashi who started last and using a series of daredevil moves finished in tenth to gain a championship point.

Brickbats go to Michael Schumacher who started his tricks during qualifying when he baulked Lewis Hamilton and went through the race crashing into almost everyone who tried to pass him.

Button's failure to change strategy and fit new tyres with ten or so laps to go cost him dear: he could have easily been fifth and possibly fourth ahead of Hamilton had he done so. Arguably, he would have been on Alonso's tail by the end but he would probably not have caught Webber who, by the end, was holding station more than a second ahead of Alonso who fought a miserably handling Ferrari to finish third.

Button, Hamilton and Massa all suffered poor pit-stops as wheels were stuck on or wouldn't come off, contributing to their overall times.

All up and down the field, there was fantastic wheel to wheel - and often closer -racing. There are, in theory, very few passing places but drivers took the track by the scruff of the neck and created opportunities on almost every corner and straight. Old fashioned slip-streaming played a major part as did old fashioned racing.

All in all, if this is Istanbul's swan song, it will be a race remembered for all the right reasons. What are they?

It proved that Formula One can be about racing more than about technology. KERS played a part and, in the early stages, so did DRS but as the race wore on, drivers did not rely on either. They drove hard, mostly fair and very fast.

The race raises questions as to whether DRS should be applied at all tracks: for Istanbul, it would have been better without it.

When one sees three F1 cars side by side in one corner, it is reminiscent of the glory days.

And that's what will bring the fans to the track and make TV audiences rebound. Even if getting there is a nightmare and ticket prices are high.