The Brawn and Red Bull teams came from nowhere to dominate the 2009 season. But was it really unexpected? Tony Dodgins finds the answer

If ever there was going to be a sea change in the established order, 2009 was going to be the year. The most dramatic aero based rule changes in a quarter of a century spelled opportunity. The rise of Brawn and Red Bull made for a fantastic story but, with the benefit of glorious hindsight, was it really that unpredictable?

Formula 1 development, for years, had been more evolution than revolution. That played to the strengths of strong, well resourced teams such as Ferrari and McLaren. They were best placed to refine a concept to the 'n'th degree, which is not to say that they were lacking in flair too.

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