Trying to watch the races and get an idea of the championship is not a realistic thing to do. So many after the fact adjustments make it hard to follow. Monza in the rain was an especially hard one to watch with the Chicane. I think exceeding track limits should be an immediate penalty of waiting for the last car on your lap to pass, then you resume. If you are the last car on your lap, you go a lap down. The way some of them barge through like it doesn't matter hurts viewing the race, especially with selective post race penalties. Because of how confusing it is, getting a realistic picture as an outsider is tough to do. The announcers certainly love Leclerc, and they get to follow it far closer than I do.
Time to revive this thread. He had a bit of a slow start in the early races, but he's been getting stronger and stronger every single weekend. A great progression. His lap in qualifying today was nothing short of sensational. What's next? Logical step is Ferrari. Funded by them, obviously has the talent. But I see a small problem now: Ferrari has always worked with a #1 and clear #2 driver. They have enough internal squables to have the drivers fight as well (didn't work out so well last time they tried that with Peroni-Villeneuve). Ferrari has a great chemistry between Kimi and Vettel, Kimi to me seems good enough most days to stay close to Vettel. But a performance like today certainly doesn't help my argument. Also, Ferrari doesn't want to risk their investment to a rival team. The final problem now, with great drives like today...is the fan base grows. Which means pressure/confidence on the driver...The way Leclerc is driving now he'll be in a position to be faster than Vettel at certain races more often than Kimi. He's a nice kid from what I've always seen. They need to control him yet also keep him satisfied. Something very difficult to do. Basically, does he understand taking a Ferrari drive but playing #2 until Ferrari says he's ready, and will he adhere to the rules? Or will he be a Verstappen/Ricciardo and just do what he wants? From little what I know from his personality, I think he could play the team game for the time being. Say he insists on 5 year guarantee drive. Obviously I don't want Kimi to go either, but he's nearly 40 now and just doesn't quite have the consistency/outright speed of Vettel.
The kid stayed up late last night with his engineers to get his car right for quali (French GP 2018) because yesterday during FP's it was worse than today.
He would be even better if the Sauber has better brakes later in the races. It’s the Sauber’s Achilles heel.
Ferrari have not always worked with a clear number 2. They have ended up with that quite a lot since Schumacher's time and it worked very well in terms of race and championship wins. But they did fine in 2007 and 2008 with Raikkonen and Massa being evenly matched. Back in Enzo's time the number 1 was the guy who was quickest on that weekend. There should be no problem as long as both drivers know they are racing for the team and accept team orders when required to. But most drivers do do that. They grumble loudly on the radio about it (so everyone knows they are only moving over because they're being told to) but they almost always do - although we do remember Vettel and Webber and Multi21! Naturally Vettel likes having Raikkonen as his teammate because he knows he's quicker. Gerhard Berger once said that his ideal teammate was two seconds a lap slower than him. But for the team it isn't much use having a second driver who isn't taking points off the opposition whenever it is possible and Raikkonen isn't doing enough. Believe me, if Leclerc goes to Ferrari next year and every race qualifies ahead of Vettel and every race is quicker than Vettel then the only person at Ferrari who won't like that will be Vettel.
I think what you are seeing here is the beginning of Ferrari's long term strategy on how to use a B team. Probably they will bring in new engineering, crew, and driving talent that they can train at Alfa and move up to the A team as needed. Some may graduate faster than others but by putting Leclerc in the Alfa Sauber there's a lot less pressure on him than if they plopped him into a seat next to Vettel right out of a junior series. If they graduate Leclerc look for them to put in another young driver and not someone near the end of their career. Everyone knows Leclerc has talent. The question is -- is he prepared enough yet to sit in a red car?
I think this needs to be said. Charles Leclerc is the rookie driver you just want to get behind vs the opposite which is Max Verstappen. Charles is very humble.........Max seems very entitled Charles races hard and clean(awesome duel with Alonso0........Max races dirty and crashes into people Charles had a medium level of expectations and promise coming into F1.........Max Verstappen had stupid amounts of HYPE You know what it comes down to........Parenting. Max's dad is a ****ing dick and taught him to race like an *******(just like he did) and sticks his noise into Max career. HE is also a wife beater Charles dad was a great guy that shared his passion with his son and (along with Jules) taught him to be a respectable young man and a hell of a racer
Not exceeding track limits will be very difficult at Paul Ricard. The painted and tarmacked run-off areas are so inviting !! They seem to erase all the risks of motor racing. The track has become far too clinical for my taste. I don't know how thoroughly they will discipline that, but I guess there would be many transgressors.
I can't wait till Charles gets into a car that can challenge Verstappen. Ive had to listen to all the BS over the years talking like he is the next Senna all the while making excuses for his crashes. I don't care what ANYONE says, Ive watched the replay 50 times, Max cause the Singapore crash last year. max and his domestic abuse dad,who looks like he is always about to explode, can F off!
Give Kimi to Sauber...then he can be #1 at car slow enough for him. Give Leclerc to Ferrari and give Vettle a team mate who can help him.
Just look back a year or two ago and this forum was full of folks insisting Max Verstapen replace Kimi. Now the forum is full of folks wanting Max to be suspended. Good cars seem to arrive after Kimi joins a team. Maybe it is just coincidence, but review what happened when he joined Lotus, and review what happened when he joined Ferrari. It is very tough for me to say "Replace Kimi", until I see that same car development skill follow the replacement driver. Some of it takes experience, and perhaps next year is still too soon.
After today’s qualifying I’m in complete agreement. I like Kimi but he just does not push. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
For me he hasn't proved himself for a Ferrari seat yet. He needs another season or 3 with Sauber at least. Assuming Ferrari did offer him a seat next year, he would be offered no2 role for 3-5years and they would still look for a new no1 driver when Vettel leaves.
And they where fuming that Kimi joined the team again. ''GROSJEAN IS THE MAN WE NEED'' was often said here. Now we laugh at him as he imagines people hitting him when he crashes out on his lonesome, doesn't understand the brakes, whines on the radio about everything and everyone... There's a lot of truth in what you say RE Kimi development: When he joined Mclaren it was constantly improving, very nice cars to drive (just very unreliable...not his fault). He joined Ferrari, contenders every season except 2009 with the new cars when they got it wrong, through development it rapidly improved. He left Ferrari and the team went backwards in how the cars drove. Alonso masked some of the issues the car had but only so much one can do. The big question is what does Ferrari gain with hiring Leclerc next year vs keeping Kimi on and what they lose? Gain: perhaps more points for the constructors Loss: Drivers championship by Leclerc taking more points of Vettel than Kimi would. Ferrari doesn't really care about the constructors (yes the argument of the Scuderia 16m always comes up...which is a weak argument. Ferrari always said they didn't win the championship for 27 years even though they won a constructors championship within that!)
LeClerc with Miss France 2018 MaevaCouckeOff Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Bas, at this time it is difficult to consider replacing either of Ferrari's drivers. They have an enviable line up. If anything a driver I wanted to see replace Alonso at Ferrari some years back would be the one guy I would see replace Kimi. At this juncture it is not a good time to gamble on driver changes, car setup is crucial, and you lose that interaction when you replace a driver.
I think Leclerc would be wise to stay with Alfa Sauber and get the experience of being a team's number one, and in helping the team develop. He's having a great first year and he needs to build on that. He needs another year to develop a cadre of support around him the way Schumacher did...and then he could be ready to win a WDC. At that point in time he may find he has his choice teams, and the advisors and engineers to help him make that choice.
That's not true, they went backwards big time in 2004 and again in 2006. Kimi had a good 2007 but then got smoked by Massa in 2008 and 2009 until his accident. 2010, Alonso's first year, was a massive improvement over 2009. The point that they would lose the WDC just by having a better driver in the 2nd seat is bunk, IMO. If the car is good enough it shouldn't matter and if LeClerc proves to be better than Vettel then good, he can be the new #1 just like what happened with Massa unseating Kimi as #1.
Me too. Can't wait to see him in a Ferrari. Wish it could happen right now so our second car would stop qualifying on the 3rd row.
