Biggest Letdowns From Title-Winning Teams in F1 History

Renault 2007 - Fernando Alonso dominated the Formula One world with his Renault in 2005 and 2006. But for 2007, the French team lost two key factors: Michelin (who had a close relationship with Renault) left F1, leaving all the teams running on Bridgestone tires, and Fernando Alonso left the defending champions to join McLaren.

The design that had mixed up so well with Alonso's aggressive driving style (especially cornering) was gone. On top of it, the French team had a lineup made up of rookie driver Heikki Kovalainen and Giancarlo Fisichella. Both of them had an awful year, and by 2008, Alonso was back at Renault, trading places with Kovalainen.

Ferrari in 2005 - It is arguably the most obvious one. If it wasn't for that joke of the U.S. Grand Prix (where only six cars had started the race), Ferrari would have been winless in 2005. And let's remember that from 2000 to 2004, Ferrari had won both championships with the help of a guy named Michael Schumacher, whom you may have heard of.

So-called experts are saying that this sudden change of fortune is attributed to the banning of tire changes for that year. In 2005 they were two tire providers, Michelin and Bridgestone. Ferrari was one of three teams using Bridgestone tires, and they were caught on the back foot. Besides, Ferrari had a weird engine and gearbox design, and with the introduction of new aero regulations, they couldn't use the full advantage of the airflow.

Williams 1988 - We could easily say that Williams's fall from grace was because they lost the all-mighty Honda power unit to McLaren, which happened to have one of the most dominant seasons in F1 history. However, it was more than that. The Judd engine that powered the FW12 was relatively underpowered, but the main problem was the suspension.

The British team decided to run an early version of the active suspension, a technology that would help them dominate F1 through the '90s. But, in 1988, the technology was not that advanced, and when things went wrong, the car was undrivable. As a result, Nigel Mansell was so fed up with the FW12 that he refused to drive it.

With only two podiums finishes, Williams ended in seventh place in the Constructors' Championship with only 20 points. Compared to the previous season, where they had finished first with Nelson Piquet, the 1988 season was a disaster.

McLaren/Ferrari 2009 - This duo of McLaren and Ferrari is here because they were the reigning champions. In 2008, Ferrari driver Felipe Massa and McLaren's own Lewis Hamilton battled until the final seconds of the season. As a result, McLaren won the Drivers' Championship while Ferrari was the constructors' one. But, in 2009, they missed badly on the new regulations, especially the double diffuser trick.

Just past halfway of the season, Ferrari and McLaren were fourth and sixth, while defending world champion Lewis Hamilton was 11th in the driver's championship. By the end of the season, Hamilton achieved two race wins with an upgraded McLaren, while Kimi Raikkonen made sure that 2009 was not a winless season for Ferrari.

Ferrari 1980 - Jody Scheckter holds the unfortunate record for the worst full-time title defense in F1 history, all because of the awful T5 Ferrari.

As a comparison, Jody Scheckter and Gilles Villeneuve had finished first and second in 1979, but in 1980 they finished 14th and 19th. The most disastrous season in Ferrari F1 history, with the best result being fifth place.

These are some of the biggest letdowns from title-winning teams in Formula One history from a personal perspective.