So it was greed by Williams? Not necessity? Much as I like to fantasize too (a grid full of WCs would be "wonderful", make it a spec series too, eh?), I'm aware that F1 is a business and as "obtuse" as I am , I remain a realist. What exactly was Williams' choice? Who better could they afford? In business, as in life, certain things must be done, like it or not. Latifi has not been useless to Williams.....quite the contrary.
Wrong. All the money in the world would not buy me a seat in F1 because I don't have a super license because I don't have the talent to win lower formulae races.
Agreed. He is not 'useless' and his money helped leapfrog other more talented options to an F1 seat but he did meet the requirements of an F1 Superlicense so he is there on merit. That said the sheer amount of time it took him to get those Superlicense points is not indicative of a great talent but rather a good driver that built up pace/results in F2 through extensive experience. Remember that F2 is seen as a stepping stone (1-2 years max) which makes it difficult for a young driver to really exploit the nuances of those cars plus they race on circuits that most of the drivers have little or no experience on. The multiple years in F2 gave Latifi enough of a leg up to make that experience compensate for a lack of true pace eventually putting him towards the front of the grid in his final season (in order to earn those Superlicense points). He would have likely been in F1 sooner if he could just get the license.
Next up Roy Nissany..also backed by yet another Canadian Billionaire! https://www.planetf1.com/news/roy-nissany-world-champion-williams/
It's amazing to see all these Canadian billionaires. I bet if F1 would be more popular in the States, we'd see some US billionaires getting their sons into the sport. Just shows that Canada (and I mean that in a very positive way) is very much focused on European culture while being a land of opportunity and big business just like the US.
Latifi and Stroll are both from the French speaking province of Quebec. Racing in Quebec has always been very different to the rest of Canada. They approach their racing with a European flair. Cars and crew are a real step up in presentation and they regularly experiment with going to Europe to pursue their aspirations. One really talented racer is Bruno Spengler who won the DTM Championship and did very well in junior formula's.
And IIRC that's also where the Villeneuves were from, right? With the West Coast of Canada (Vancouver) being so distinctly British, makes me wonder why they aren't as much into F1? Too far removed from England by distance and time zones?
Of course the Villeneuves were very much from Quebec even if Jacques was only technically born there and spent most of his life in Monaco. That said Jacques did run Formula Atlantic in Canada and did really well winning the 1993 support race for the Canadian GP. There are not a lot of racing talents to come out of Quebec. Paul Tracy is probably the most successful and then there is Greg Moore who was from the West Coast in the Province of British Columbia (where Vancouver is). Greg was mighty fast and would have done well in F1 given the correct opportunity. Funny story back in 1997 I convinced a bank to give me a unsecured loan to buy a 1991 Van Diemen Formula 1600 car. It was Greg Moore's old car and I flew to British Columbia to buy it. While the car had gone through a few hands since I did stop by his Dad's Chrysler dealership in Maple Ridge BC during the trip. I would later have Greg sign his original log book and eventually sold the car to a Mr. Hinchcliffe who's son James (Future Indy 500 pole sitter and Indycar race winner) was too young to race but idolized Greg Moore. They still have that car and it is displayed at the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame.
Get off my case ! If you think someone who gets a Superlicence is useless, address your complaints to the FIA! There are some requirement to obtain one, and Latifi fulfilled them. Period.
That doesn't make my statement of him being useless wrong. Unless his only use is the money he brings to keep the team from doing a titanic. Have you seen him race in the lower formula's? I have. He. Is. Useless. Get of your case? Why? Like I said, it's relative, I don't understand why you have such a big problem understanding relativity. Do you and Tif12 have the same problems understanding such basic concepts?
You are entitled to your opinion, but you should allow others to have a different one, and not try to shut them up all the time.
This is a forum. People debate things on forums. It's not called an echo chamber. If you think it is the latter, try taking your own advice as well. If you think Latifi is a good F1 driver, be my guest.
Let’s not forget the other Jacques Villeneuve, Gilles’ brother. 2-time F-Atlantic champ, Can-Am champ, CART race winner but three DNQ’s in F1 with uncompetitive cars. He gave up an offer to do F3 with Marlboro-backed Euroracing (either because he didn’t want to be in Europe or found F3 cars not fast enough) and so never really made a name for himself. Same daredevil style as his brother. The first Can-Am race he did at Trois-Rivières had him in a 2-litre Osella keeping ahead of some 5-litre cars... until the inevitable off. Here he is winning F-Atlantic at the same Trois-Rivières street circuit and, in an Arrows, heading brother Gilles in practice for the 1981 Canadian GP: Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Also not mentioned was (son) Jacques’ teammate in F-Altlantic, Claude Bourbonnais, who outscored him in the championship and came within 4 points of the championship but was passed up for a move to CART for Villeneuve because of the name and the fact that Jacques was being groomed for success.
Ding-ding, ding-ding, ding-ding, dinggggg..... We have a winner. I knew with enough prodding you'd get it. Now if you'd get a hobby instead obsessing over Latifi's "uselessness"...... Why give a sheet?
No, I simply think that calling him "useless" is very much OTT. We have seen far worse than him in F1.
Naaaahhhh. 'Not moaning at all. 'Just defending someone who's not here to defend themself. I do this often when there are posters that apparently need to boost their self-steem by degrading others that aren't even present. Enough, no?