What's most wild about this is I don't think anyone would have seen this coming if it were mentioned the previous couple years.
I have to call you on this one. Your point was that McLaren were going to dump Hamilton due to his insolence. I opined that Hamilton was in the position to LEAVE McLaren for a better contract elsewhere (I even said Mercedes in a swap with Nico). You felt Hamilton was done in F1...I felt McLaren and Hamilton may be over because the relationship was damaged. In reality, we're probably both wrong. I think the Mercedes/Hamilton deal is more about the crafty Brawn making a "Super Team" than Hamilton/McLaren hurt feelings.
+1 to all. With apologies to Florian for messing with his language; Merc board; "Vye haf we not von more of zee races?" Ross; "Our drivers suck" MB; "But, zee Schu is zee best, no?" R; "Was the best, we need Lulu!" They damn well better win now, or it will all end in copious amounts of tears..... Cheers, Ian
too right, I will go even further and say that if Merc don't do well in the next 2 years they will do a Toyota and leave F1 saying they have nothing to prove
Hee, hee, hee. Just wait until LH mouths off to Ross. I suspect that the response will not be as soothing and diplomatic as Martin Whitmarsh. I can just hear Ross on the radio now...."Ahhh, Lewis, yes, we hear you but you can go pound sand". I would also not be surprised to see some slow pit stops from McLaren for LH the rest of the year. You can be sure that they won't want to see a number 1 on the Mercedes next year.
And as BMW did! (Funnily enough, I was making the exact same prediction about Mercedes possibly leaving F1 in a couple of years if results weren't forth coming, at work today!)
yes, BMW have the same mindset, and Honda to some extent Results driven companies, not in it for the love of the sport
WRONG! YOU are wrong. I said he is done and Mclaren and will never win another WDC. Reread my thread there Tex BTW I do not think Mclaren will sabotage his chances for this years WDC as they WILL keep the trophy I just dont think he will win it
I read it again. The crux of your argument was that a) Hamiltone is done and would never win another WDC and b) McLaren would fire/dismiss him. I countered that Hamilton would dictate which team he would drive for if McLaren didn't get it together with him, even citing Mercedes as a destination before any story broke.
+1. Hamilton left McLaren on his own terms, that much is clear. McLaren tried to play hard ball and probably pissed him off enough (with their insulting offer of lower salary than he is currently getting) that LH wanted to tell them to shove it even after they came back with a much more lucrative offer. As for LH never winning another WDC, that's ridiculous to say, he has a long career ahead of him and who knows how fast Mercedes could be next year. So, in summary: -LH was not "fired" -McLaren tried hard to retain his services -LH could still easily win more WDCs in the future I've never seen someone gloat so much over being wrong!
Agreed. Whitmarsh did not deny later that Hamilton had been their No 1 choice. I know we made [Hamilton] a very, very big financial offer, bigger than I believe any Formula One driver is enjoying today, he said. We went a long way to make a good offer to Lewis but ultimately it takes two to get to a signature. We clearly didnt agree terms and weve moved in a different direction. The question now is whether heads will roll at McLaren for failing to get Hamilton to sign. It would seem doubtful although executive chairman Ron Dennis was clear at Monza three weeks ago that it was Whitmarshs responsibility to get Hamilton over the line. He failed to achieve that.
That is very interesting, as it rules out money as the deciding factor. What different terms could it have been that made Hamilton move away from a proven car and a lot of money? The only thing that comes to my mind would be the "develop his own brand" thing that Mercedes offers, but would that really outweigh the money and especially a fast car?!
Yes it is interesting, I think Brawn has made this happen, and who knows what he has whispered in his ear. I also think Bernie the show maker wanted this to happen as well. I have to admit I was shocked this has happened, on reflection I now think it is all rather exciting.
Absolutely! Thinking further, Brawn may have got Hamilton with the assurance that he would be the unquestioned #1 (something Hamilton surely wants to hear!), and that he has the possibility to build the team and lead them to a championship. I could imagine that the criticism of not needing to rise up through the lesser teams really bothers Hamilton, and that he now sees a chance to prove that his critics are wrong. How well this will work out with the notoriously troublesome Mercedes team... I'm not so sure. Absolutely! Absolutely!
Bingo! LH was definitely number 1 at McLaren and had been for years. Just because they say they don't doesn't mean they actually don't. Now LH has broken the umbilical cord and can make his own mark in F1 for the truly first time. No amount of money from McLaren would have kept him there, just like we all had to leave our first jobs to remove the apprentice/trainee monkey off our backs. Pete
Pete, I can somewhat agree with your sentiments, however IMO part of his reasoning for leaving Mclaren was that fact he wasn't treated as a number one driver, as we know or is claimed, Mclaren pride themselves on letting their drivers race each other. It will not have escaped Lewis's attention how well Alonso is doing under a system with a clear #1 status.
