Bandwagon jumping in the Racing section..

This has been my take on things: LH is very talented, and has loads of potential. Being in a top car, when the team is also in top form, is hugely beneficial as well. HOWEVER, having the talent and the potential does NOT guarantee continued future success, especially success in a linear and increasing fashion. There will always be factors outside of his control, as is the same for every other driver. I'm glad he's in a good car, and making the most of it today--while adding spice to the F1 soup. And there's nothing wrong with opining about his future, but at the same time we shouldn't forget that 'likely' and 'certainty' are different things. While i have not proclaimed LH to be 'the next this or that' in a manner that others should embrace (some might say that's chicken of me, 'no risk'), i will still stick to my current belief ('safe' if you will): he's very talented and has massive potential, and i HOPE his career unfolds in a way that allows those things to continue to develop. Just because i don't sway back and forth so quickly and easily--or make far reaching 'predictions', does not mean that i'm blind, or that i don't have the ability to 'read between the lines'. And it has nothing to do with being on the fence either.

 

Didn't you mean to say sack Raikkonen? Massa is the one that is upholding Ferrari's season at this point. If you would want to bring MS back, dump the lead weight.

 

To be quite honest, I cant see whats going on with KR.
Time for the woodshed.

 

Tru dad!

 

Well, they actually do. I am not a Michael Schumacher fan for the person Michael Schumacher but I accept the fact that he is the greatest driver that has driven F1 to date. As such I have secured a piece of Ferrari memorbilia and of the greatest driver to date.
I do have a bad feeling though that some of his records, if not all, could soon be challenged by a few drivers currently in the mix.
I admire Schumacher for his driving style and the balls he has displayed so many times. I recognize him for his ability but I am not a fan that would stalk him at a hotel or a restaurant. I wouldn't mind though running into him in a bar and chatting with him casual to find out if he is or is not a nice guy!

Does that make sense? Maybe I should explain this in German

 

Is he doing anything in the Ferrari that Irvine and Rubens didn't do before him?

There is an awful lot of mediocrity in Massa's record prior to joining Ferrari that none of the other top drivers demonstrated. Why should I believe that Massa has suddenly elevated himself from the ranks of Schumacher's other waterboys into a top-level driver virtually overnight? How do I separate his driving abilities from the superiority of the Ferrari package? When Massa wins in something other than a Ferrari, perhaps then we can talk...

 

Actually it does make sense. I think you're just as much a split personality as I am. And I mean that as a compliment. I'm not a MS fan myself (well duh, that's quite obvious isn't it?), but very proud of the signed visor (and replica suit plus helmet) I have of him in my F1 collection. Same reasons as yours plus he has become a cornerstone in any Ferrari collection, so ignoring him would be just plain silly.

I believe if you'd ever bump into him in a bar, he's a super nice guy. The unpleasant part of his personality only comes out in the cockpit.

 

But of course. I'm feeling quite magnanimous today!

 

Same here. I may not be a Schumacher fan but I am hardly willing to dispute the fact that he is one of the all-time greats.

All I have is a Ferrari piston ashtray...

 

IIRC, Schumacher did not get his first pole position until after Senna's death....

 

Which unpleasant part? The Winning at all possible avenues? You should go SCCA racing my friend . Matter of fact I am heading out the door with a picture of my Miata before the last race to give it to my bodyshop so they can match the paint line back on the door

The best part is that all the Senna hooplas here forget that Senna did the same exact thing in 1990 (Japan) when he took out Prost and ended Prosts run for the Championship. Deliberate but of course....nobody wants to remember that.

In my case I simply don't like the attitude and probably his ugly face...who knows, just a general bad feeling when I see him, has nothing to do with anything I can point to.

Now where is my big 9ft pet rabbit "Harvey" ????

 

What Senna did was abominable. And just as bad as what Prost did to him. Being a Prost fan of course I was more upset about Senna, but they were equally bad in that regard.

Absolute worst Schumacher moment where I felt like strangling him through the TV: His arrogant denial of the Monaco parking incident last year. Having done that was bad enough, but then lie about it and even get upset at the reporters calling his bluff was too much. If he had reacted with a sheepesh grin, it would have actually been kinda cool. This way he looked like a truly despicable liar and cheater. It reminded me of big Tobacco managers speaking to Senators on the floor or of former Enron executives denying to the press.

 

We are all aware of that, just as we are aware that Senna's move was retribution for Prost's identical move the year earlier, as we are also aware that Senna announced his intent before the race, and as we are aware that Senna later expressed regret for the move and sought (and received) Prost's forgiveness.

We are also aware that Schumacher, on the other hand, took out anyone who was a challenge and later reacted not with regret but arrogance when called out on his action.

And we are further aware that Senna never acted in such a fashion that his entire season was cancelled for unsportsmanlike behavior.

And lastly we are aware that Senna never had to win a pole position by blocking the track to prevent a faster car from overtaking his time.

Anything else you were wondering?

 

I prefer racing with NASA myself. 13/13 rule, sportsmanship, enjoyable experience for all, etc., etc., etc.

 

I enjoy NASA as well for the 13/13 (current points leader and last years Champion) but you are fully aware that racing means contact. Ask any pro driver and they will tell you the same. You win if that means rubbing you rub till the paint comes off.

 

Blocking in qualifying was just as common then as it is today. If you remember teams that had the two qualifying positions (back in the days of 60min open qualifying) would all cramp out the last minutes and put their cars on the track so nobody would get a clean lap in the last 10 min of the qualifying run. Then they changed it to giving one on one qualifying runs, why? because they wanted to stop the blocking. That did not work so they changed it again. Yes, Racing is strategy on the edge of being legal. Just as being on the edge of legal on the car, being on the edge of legal with the driver.

They tweeked and tweeked and hid electronics where they should not have been, got fuel delivery where they should not, pumped more fuel than allowed, ran undertrays bigger than allowed just to scrap them during the race down to legal specs for impound.
Now why do you think Renault all of a sudden was a force in 2005 when they were mid pack the year before? Of course they cheated. They all do, they all will, that is what this game is about. In 05 and 06 Renault simply cheated better than the rest as did Ferrari the years before that.

You need to stop thinking that Senna was any better than any of the guys today. He wanted to win and he did at all cost. He was known for that, including fist fights in the paddock.

It is too funny that you need to bring down another driver (who on top of everything was friends with Senna) in order to claim Senna was better thann anybody else. Too sad, because you actually devalue his talent.

 

Understood, especially in Spec Miata.

I simply prefer the environment at a NASA event to SCCA myself.

 

How different is Hamilton's debut year going from Jacques Villeneuve's debut year? Look how he ended up.

Regardless of how good a driver's showing are their 1st year, they can only be labeled as promising until some time has passed, at least a season.

 

Very, very different.

 

Oh really?

His very 1st year in Formula 1 was 1996 with the Williams team.
Here are the results for that year;

WINS: 4
POLES: 3
PODIUMS: 11
POINTS: 78 (3rd)

COMPLETE RESULTS:
GRAND PRIX / QUALY / RACE
Suzuka 1 DNF Wheel
Estoril 2 1
Monza 2 7
Spa-Francorchamps 1 2
Hungaroring 3 1
Hockenheim 6 3
Silverstone 2 1
Magny-Cours 6 2
Montreal 2 2
Barcelona 2 3
Monte Carlo 10 DNF Collision
Imola 3 11
Nurburgring 2 1
Buenos Aires 3 2
Interlagos 3 DNF Spun off
Melbourne 1 2

JV got pole his 1st race. His 1st win came after only his second F1 race. He then went on to win 3 more.

So how is the comparison between the two "Very, very different." as you said? Please enlighten us all.

 

kizdan, there is no need for me to enlighten anybody else because YOU are the only fool here arguing otherwise. Now you're on another thread arguing that Kimi doesn't owe Ferrari anything more than to show up and drive lest his family life suffer. Yeah. That's surely the thing champions are made of.

Between your opinions in this thread and your post on the other I've just about seen all I need out of you. Thanks for playing. Last word is yours, I'm sure it's worth a lot to you. Keep the change.

 

Brilliant response, or shall I say non-response, Einstein. When you get a clue about F1, we'll talk.

 

It doesn't look different at all to me either.

 

Same as Ted and Andreas, all I have is one of his Baseball Caps. Now that he is not in the racing car, I definately miss the guy.