Formula One End of Season Awards 2016: Nico Rosberg pipped Lewis Hamilton to top spot but who were the other winners… and losers

NICO ROSBERG swooped away with the main prize but here are SunSport's Formula One Awards for the 2016 season. A record-breaking year of 21 races with plenty of on, and off, track drama.

Driver of the Year: Max Verstappen. The Red Bull star might not have won the title but his thrilling performances this year have livened up the races. Oozing in confidence, Verstappen tries the things other drivers can only dream of. Red Bull could be more of a threat to the Mercedes duo of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton next season and if they are, then Verstappen could be line for title No.1.

Stand out Performance: Max Verstappen in Brazil. Heavy rain never dampened his fighting spirit as he breezed past Kimi Raikkonen. He also showed he has nerves of steel to swoop past Nico Rosberg. Add into that his sensational save from crashing into the barriers at over 100mph, and the fact he was 16th with 16 laps to go but managed to finish third, and you get the picture as to just how good this was.

Best Race: Brazil. Awful weather. A twisty and technical track. Cars crashing out - even on the way to the grid. Safety cars. Smashes. Red Flags and some stellar drives from Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen and Carlos Sainz. Brazil had the lot this season.

Best Radio Rant: Sebastian Vettel lost his cool on more than one occasions but his "f*** you, Charlie" rant to Race Director Charlie Whiting in Mexico was a classic.

Worst Race: Baku. Beautiful city and looked amazing on the TV pictures. The up-hill section past the castle wall looked good too. But the race was boring. The atmosphere would have been the same had they staged this race on the moon!

Biggest Accident: Fernando Alonso in Australia. McLaren's driver was lucky to be alive after crashing and going into a terrifying barrel roll at almost 200mph. The car was totally wrecked yet somehow he climbed from the wreckage unscathed and waved to the TV cameras so his mum knew he was all ok.

Biggest Mistake: Red Bull's horror show in Monaco is still difficult to watch, as a mix up in communications left race leader Daniel Ricciardo sitting waiting for fresh tyres that simply took an age to turn up. The tyres were stuck at the rear of the garage and the mechanics could not get them out. Ricciardo was denied the win and he was furious at this team, saying over the radio, "nothing you can say will make this any better -- save it!".

Biggest Sulk: Hamilton's meltdown at the media in Japan was monumental. His frustration at the engine blow in Malaysia took the form of a media blackout in response to his Snap Chat antics in a press conference. It was all rather pathetic and played into Rosberg's hands.

Biggest Surprise: Ron Dennis was booted out of his own team after almost 36 years. The former Executive Chairman of the F1 team was ousted by his rival shareholders. But he is now planning a return to the sport -- maybe with the Manor F1 team.