Hamilton or Rosberg?

Agree-and why I will never rate him as the greatest ever. Would fangio, Clark or Lauda do something stupid like that?

 

Hahaha..

 

You can apologize for him all you want but it was a chicken **** move. The worst ever done in F1, IMO.

 

Yep and all that stupidity about "going for the gap"- it's fine if the gap is wide enough to make a pass but that was his silly attempt to justify his "red mist" moment. Luckily no one was hurt.

 

If someone were hurt he would be the most vilified person in f1 right now. Let alone a hero.

 

People usually seem to choose to remember the dead fondly, especially if they died doing something brave like racing. If Senna hadn't died on the track, I think people would have been more openly critical of his career and many would hold a much different opinion of him today. I thought Senna was arrogant, far too emotional, reckless with his own safety - and worst of all, dangerous to those racing around him. I agree with intrepidcva11 and classic308, Senna should have been disqualified and Prost should have taken the 1990 championship.

I've always respected the thinking racing drivers rather than the ones who set out to prove the diameter of their testes to the world. Prost and Schumacher were my kind of champions: both very calculating when they were in the car, brave enough for the moment, ruthless when they had to be, and most of all drove for points - relentlessly racking up championships. Arguably, Schumacher pulled a "Senna" in 1997 and got disqualified for it... so I guess either the FIA had learned by then or perhaps Senna was not as unfavoured by the FIA as he had thought.

Personally, I get sick of hearing about Senna portrayed as some kind of driving deity - he was undeniably fast but also inescapably emotionally flawed... Hamilton seems to mimic this style a bit too much. Hamilton is also very fast when he's focused, but his personal life disrupts his performance and he has a tendency to lose sight of the championship in favour of emotively risking everything for slightly bettering a single race result - he's insufficiently patient. Conversely, although he is not outright as fast as Hamilton, Rosberg is more like a Prost or Schumacher in that he had his eyes on the whole championship and is willing to compromise individual race results in order to maintain consistency over a whole season. Consistency wins championships, and it is precisely for this reason that Rosberg will win the 2014 WDC.

Of course, I could be wrong, and we'll find out whether that is the case in a few months.

All the best,
Andrew.

 

Andrew thanks for the candor. There's more than a bit of truth in what you said.

 

Great post. I can't stand the senna worship amongst f1 groups

 

Which, of course, includes the guys who actually drive the cars.

I think there are many reasons why Senna is so highly regarded in the F1 world. He was obviously a gifted, instinctive driver who seemed wired to the car in a way that others aren't. However, I think his apolitical, anti-hero battle against the underside of the FIA and formula one governing bodies made him a very sympathetic figure, to fans and drivers alike. He had the freedom and the talent to say the things that most drivers can't and stood up to guys like Balestre. In talking to Montoya once, he said the thing he absolutely despised about Formula 1 was the way politics played such a significant role. He cited Senna as being the one guy who had the gonads to not take the crap but still remained in the sport and was successful. I think he connected with tons of people because he was seen as more than just a driver.

Was he flawed? All drivers are. What one person sees as "overly emotional driving", others see as "passion for winning". Some people connect to methodical and cunning drivers, some like the guys who go 150% every lap. While you and others don't like Senna and feel he is undeserving of being hailed as one of, if not the, all-time greats, you can't deny that there is a huge legion of folks who see things the other way.

As far as his "red mist" moment at Suzuka is concerned, I don't think it was that at all. He was (recklessly) sending a message to Balestre for what I think was undeniably an attempt to alter the rules and provide his fellow countryman with a path to win. The reason he wasn't penalized is probably because JMB couldn't answer the question about the action that spawned the incident.

 

I agree Hamilton is more the emotional type of driver, but I don't agree that has hampered him this year. The failed cylinder in Australia happened before he completed a lap. The broken brake this weekend was a freak occurrence. The MGU failure in Canada hit both cars, his just failed before Rosberg's so Nico was able to adjust. Had Nico suffered these issues instead of Ham, Lewis would be coasting.

I continue to hold that those types of things even out over the course of a season, so I don't think it's smooth sailing ahead for Rosberg.

 

Good post except you have forgotten how emotional Schumacher used to be. Remember how many years it took for him to finally grab the WDC for Ferrari? Often from 97 to 2000 it came down to the last race and MS crumbled ... so much so that in 2001 I deliberately did not watch Suzuka because I didn't want to jinx him if you like.
Pete

 

Oh well we are back to even stevens.

As regards the debate on the previous posts about Senna ect, ask yourself who would you rather watch racing on track at full tilt from the back of the pack, taking out your personal likes or dislikes.

 

Schumacher. At his best, he was awesome.

All the best,
Andrew.

 

Gilles of course, Zolder 79 is something out of this world...although it ended in tears...Mansell was another grat recoverer, Hungary 89 was probably his best show...

 

LOL he rarely gets past the first corner ..

Whereas MS was rarely ever at the back.. a great dedicated driver I admit.

 

Awesome stuff
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeLK9UftveA]Gilles Villeneuve VS Rene Arnoux - 1979 French Grand Prix - YouTube[/ame]

 

Yes it is Steve, simply the gratest battle to be watched in f.1 and i would dare to say in motorsport history....although there are stories from another one between Gilles and keke in f. Atlatic that would put this one to shame!!!Been long searching for footage but i guess no one recorded it...

 

Has Nico ever fought his way from the back of a pack ever? Has he ever actually had any real misfortunes in his F1 career?

I ask this because I don't know. We've seen ham, vettel, alonso, etc do it but in the short time I've been following f1 very closely I don't recall Nico having to.?

 

It wasn't that long ago that we were arguing if Nico would ever get his first win or not.

 

he was in crap cars then......

 

in today's mentality these guys would have gotten 3 race bans and been required to take sensitivity training.

 

True.
But I think that he's still underrated by some.

 

Mansell in Hungary was BRILLIANT. Made passes on a track that allegedly was too hard to pass on....

 

No I can't say I have seen it myself.

LOL true enuff.

Nico IIRC has always been good in Q, then seemed to fade in the race, however of late whether it's the car that is very much suited to him, or he has improved in that department who knows, I have never underrated him though.

Maybe it's a combination of the desire to beat Hamilton, and the realization this may be his only shot at a title again who knows.

I will say, it would be nice to watch him battle through from the back of the pack like Ham did, and see how he goes on.