Who were the Top Five Drivers of the Year? An insider's view

I asked JA on F1 readers to name their top five drivers of the year by Monday 29th November, the prize for the first ten entries which match my choice of top five will win a signed copy of my 2010 season review book, "Five rivals, one Champion".

We've had almost 700 entries so far; some very entertaining ones and some very well considered.

For a bit of fun I have also asked one or two friends in and around F1 for their Top Five and today we have the veteran Williams, Benetton and Toyota engineer, Frank Dernie. Here is his choice:

1. Sebastian Vettel

Made some mistakes early on - what can we expect from someone so young and inexperienced, kept his head and kept learning to the end to win. Exceptional.

2. Nico Rosberg

Outperformed the car and Michael all year, very few mistakes. His performance deserved more but car not good enough.

3. Mark Webber

Nearly made it, unexpectedly great season.

4. Fernando Alonso

In my opinion Alonso has been the best driver for many years but this year he made too many errors.

5. Lewis Hamilton

Good effort but mistakes whilst trying a bit too hard to compensate a car which was never quite as good as the opposition.

If you haven't already, give me your top five in the comments section below. Entries close on Monday 29 November at 12pm UK time.

The book is published on Monday and all orders will be sent out then. Every copy ordered through the JA on F1 site will be signed.

For any readers who would like to come along and have a chat about the season, I will be doing a book signing on Thursday December 9th at 5-30pm to 7pm at Motor Books, 13/15 Cecil Court London WC2N 4AN Phone +44 (0)20 7836 5376.