It's quick indeed, a consistent car most of all. But it's not as quick as the Mclaren has been this season, perhaps for 2 or 3 races it was quicker. Mclaren have screwed up a lot of the early races this season which greatly benefited others. We shouldn't forget that . I hope Kimi can win the next race so he really brings himself into the title race.
Wrong. CEO's are not the "brand" of their organization, they just have the responsibility of guiding it to success. (few like Larry Ellison, Steve Jobs or Bill Gates are also part of the brand, but I digress) Drivers are a significant part of the brand in Formula 1 ("best drivers, best cars, blah, blah, blah"). Nobody thinks about Mehmet Khan when they drink a can of Coke. Everyone thinks about Lewis Hamilton when they see Mercedes McLaren (whether good or bad thoughts). Of course, that's better for Bernie than it is for McLaren, but the fact remains that a driver with drawing power (and is fast) is much better for a team than a warm body.
Agree, Lotus has been quicker for a few races, but McLaren have been their own worst enemies this season. Remember the 2 or 3 races they had wheel nut problems, resulting in 10-15 sec pit stops (when everyone else was doing 3-4 secs)? Or the infamous trip to the back of the grid for Lewis (after qualifying on pole) because someone improperly figured he was out of fuel at the end of qualifying? It's been a very un-McLaren-like season, that's for certain. These guys are usually efficient, if nothing else.
LH is expedable. Mclaren will protect itself. He is an employee and RD has stated as much in public. LH drives for us. If we want him to stay he has a contract. End of story. The world didnt stop turning with no MS or Kimi and we will all lose ourselves if the twitter/rapstar walks LOL??? No. Here is the quote: McLaren's Ron Dennis fires warning shot over Lewis Hamilton contract • Chairman says: 'We employ him, not the other way round' Lewis Hamilton has distanced himself from remarks made by Ron Dennis, the McLaren executive chairman, relating to his contract, ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix here. Hamilton's contract expires at the end of this year and the British driver insists the question of where he will be driving next year is not of particular import at this stage of the season. Dennis told Radio 5 Live there was "no reason Lewis won't be driving our cars in the future". However, he added: "I think people get the wrong impression though, as when I last looked at the contract I was paying him. It's a question of whether we employ him, not the other way around
And, he should say otherwise? Clearly there is some question of "who's running whom" if he felt the need to respond to the situation. My point is simply that figures like athletes and actors are not 'regular employees'. True, everyone is expendable at some level, but they have far more leverage in their fields because the best are simply difficult to replace...sometimes impossible. It's errant to believe that they can be shuffled around like 'any other employee'. Even a damaged Peyton Manning had to be handled with kid gloves when the Indianapolis Colts (rightly) chose to replace him with Andrew Luck. They are a part of the brand, and that limits how you can treat them without public rebuke from fans.
May I ask all the folks here from the British Isles and Europe if Lewis is well liked? Amongst my friends here in the U.S. he is not
Most I talk to like him, however they can understand why he attracts lets say dislike. It is funny really because in the past when a few USA guys that have met him, in the USA, that post on here, they had nothing but complete praise for the guy, taking photos no problem chatting to his kids no problem. They even posted thier photos of him and them on here, I think he was called Big D..
I'm an ex-pat, does that count? My 02c - Based solely on what I read - He's *exactly* the same polarizing figure there as here - Some love him, others "hate" him - Some with a real passion either way...... *Nobody* seem to be neutral on the guy. Cheers, Ian
From what I heard, he and Schu were screamed for like no one else in Canada. You're right though, Lewis does not carry a neutral opinion with any fan! love or hate
Well I profess my undoing love for Button so as you can see I have nothing against the Brits. Heck I loved JB when he was with Honda which I suppose is because I was racing an NSX then...but I have always really loved Jensons attitude
He always seemed to be enjoying himself and had his father around. It gave me a warm and fuzzy feeling
Where did he go? IIRC, he was JB's #1 supporter - "Button" avatar, the whole nine yards! Then he was gone...... [Before he won the title? - Man, he could have done some gloating at the over-the-hill-never-was-has-been brigade! ] Cheers, Ian
IIRC, those comments were just after Lewis created another **** storm with his "I want my trophies" comments...... Do *not* mess with Ron! FWIW, in the piranha tank, Ron makes Eddie look like a guppy IMO........ Cheers, Ian
I do not gloat over Button's wins but do envy his life..as well as Kimi's.....they seem to be very well grounded and unfazed by it all
+1 Anyone know why he disappeared? [He was "entertaining" on occasion IIRC - Did he "do a Lewis" and throw his toys from the pram one too many times? ] Cheers, Ian
Well done, I know I would, gloat that is. Anyway we have butted heads many times in the past over Hamilton, but we ended up ok I think, I should have sussed it earlier.
In F1 the team is the brand. The driver is not. He is an employee and most have a limited time on the team. Ferrari did what without MS? They did what Ferrari still does, race in F1 with other employee's. Its that simple. Ask Kimi. He was let go no gloves required. A contract in F1 is very much a one way street. RD put it out plainly for LH's so called management. Refreshing actually and a polite but not so subtle reminder of how tenuous his employment is. Sure its tactics as they negotiate but LH is learning the hard way. How silly at this point in his career.
From what I read on forums (british) I used to frequent a lot, former McHam supporters are quite irritated by him. Most of them the same pattern too ''brilliant driver, but he is ******''. It's mostly about his personality that pisses people off. I think a good 85% the people I talk about now used to like him (british, races for McLaren and was keeping up/beating Alonso) and have turned.
These days that's just what the marketeers are looking for. Doesn't matter if you're loved or hated just as long as you elicit strong emotions. See: Kardashian.
