Lewis Hamilton: Astounding Or Atrocious | FerrariChat

Lewis Hamilton: Astounding Or Atrocious

Discussion in 'F1' started by jk0001, Sep 17, 2008.

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  1. jk0001

    jk0001 F1 Veteran

    Oct 18, 2005
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    Jim
    http://bleacherreport.com/articles/58344-lewis-hamilton-astounding-or-atrocious


    When Lewis Hamilton lost the World Championship in his rookie season by one point, I was one of the many who admired the rookie’s talents. When the 2008 season began with Lewis’ victory at Melbourne, I personally thought that it was THE best way for a driver to start his championship bid after a disappointing first year.

    However, as the season progressed, I have slowly switched sides, and recently have become a fan of www.lewishamiltonsucks.com. I am sure that I am not the only one to share this view of the Briton, and I began pondering how anyone can turn their back on an amazing driver such as Hamilton.

    Although many claim that the hatred against Hamilton is purely based on his African American roots, many also argue that they are rather tired of his antics. For me, personally, the latter is very valid.

    While Robert Kubica, in a recent interview, declared that all drivers respect one another, Hamilton made this comment when asked about the Kimi Raikkonen’s driving skills at Spa: “That’s the way he drives. If you don’t have the balls to brake late, that’s your problem…” This statement wouldn’t have enraged many Ferrari and Raikkonen tifosis if Hamilton had only stopped speaking after that. However, he took the liberty to comment on Felipe Massa’s position in the championship: “Massa is the one who has to work damn hard to keep up with me.”

    In a previous interview, he has openly talked about his superiority over all the other drivers from the past and the present: "I'm no No 2, whoever you put me next to - even Michael Schumacher." Although I agree that every driver should consider himself second to none, blatantly claiming supremacy over a legend such as Michael Schumacher is rather primitive.

    Even though one can state that Schumacher was also arrogant, and that arrogance is required to become a champion in this sport, Schumacher has seldom shown his arrogance off the track. He might have driven reckless, he might have gotten into fights with David Coulthard over racing incidents, and he even might have even purposefully blocked the Rascasse hairpin in Monaco in 2006 to secure pole position; but no one has ever called that man arrogant, because he did what a racing driver is ought to do: drive, fight and win at any cost.


    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Who's the Greatest Athlete of Our Time?Hamilton does have something in common with Schumacher, as he will also do anything to win. He will drive his heart out as he declared in an interview: “I'm a racer, I do the best job I can on the track and I race my heart off.” That statement would have been acceptable if he had only decided to stop there; however, he continued on to say that “There’s no-one that puts more heart into it than me.”

    My question would be this: why would people spend millions purchasing Formula One teams, and hire drivers who don’t want to put their ‘hearts’ into this sport or who don’t want to win the World Championship?”

    Everybody agrees that Hamilton is a good driver, but he is also not a perfect driver. Whether in racing or in life, everybody makes mistakes; the highlight of Hamilton’s faux pas came in Canada when he disregarded the red light at the end of the pit lane, and ended Raikkonen’s race.

    During the Thursday press conference at France, Anne Giuntini from L’Equipe asked Lewis the following question: “Sorry to disturb you, Lewis, but is it what you call a small incident involving Kimi being a victim? Is it smaller than a mistake that would annoy only you?” Instead of providing a straightforward answer, Hamilton reflected with this rhetoric: “That’s what I just said, didn’t I?”

    Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t that a little “arrogant?” Kimi made a similar mistake in Monaco when he ran into the back of Adrian Sutil, but he had the “balls” to openly confess to the heart stricken Force India driver.

    Hamilton’s self proclaimed superiority over the other drivers goes deeper when he blatantly admitted that he has a more athletic than most drivers. At the Thursday press conference in Britain, Hamilton was asked the following: “At the Reebok launch the other day you were quoted as saying you thought you were fitter than Jenson. Is that the case?” Hamilton’s response was obvious: “I’ve noticed that Jenson has a bit of a belly and so… I’m only joking! I was just trying to be positive.” I think anyone can agree that one can be positive about themselves without putting anyone else down. When Jensen Button threw down the gauntlet and invited Lewis to a triathlon, Lewis initially agreed only to back down a while later due to concerns shown by his management.

    I am completely aware of the fact that there are people who are ready to say that I am reading between the lines here, so here is a final quote from the omnipotent Hamilton himself from a TV interview, where he was questioned about his feelings from Turn One in Hungary, where he and Heikki Kovalainen lost their first and second place on the grid, respectively: “Hungary was a disappointing first corner for me. As you know, when I’m racing, generally no one overtakes me. And if they do, it’s only on the inside, and that’s a big gift. When I got overtaken on the outside, that’s something I swear would never happen again.” I don’t think it can get any clearer than that.

    Hamilton: I am the best.

    In my opinion, Hamilton has to realize that he indeed is a human being and not a demigod as he thinks he is. When a manufacturer such as McLaren provides a car such as the MP4-23, a driver has to be able to extract 100 percent from the car, and provide results. There is no surprise that Lewis is winning Grands Prix with that car; however, what’s more surprising is the fact Fenando Alonso was able to finish fourth in the Italian Grand Prix after starting eighth on the grid with an inferior Renault.

    What’s truly mind-blowing is the fact that Sebastian Vettel was able to produce a victorious drive in the treacherous conditions in a Scuderia Toro Rosso’s STR4. What was even more astonishing was that Vettel was reluctant to make any correlations between himself and Schumacher:

    However, Vettel’s record breaking achievement seems to be getting overshadowed by the British press, who simply cannot stop praising Hamilton. I have also noticed that the majority of Lewis Hamilton’s fans are British, and there is something fundamentally wrong if the majority of your fans are of the same nationality as you; I mean, does anyone here remember Sanjaya Malakar?




    Let the games begin!
     
  2. kraftwerk

    kraftwerk Two Time F1 World Champ

    May 12, 2007
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    Oh no Jim, you are taking the P!ss now...

    Drink some of that nasty beer., I'm outta here.
     
  3. jk0001

    jk0001 F1 Veteran

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    #3 jk0001, Sep 17, 2008
    Last edited: Sep 17, 2008
    I'm just the Mail Man. :D Things were too quiet here, I had to add more logs to the fire.
     
  4. modena

    modena F1 Rookie
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    Hamilton needs to be taken down a few notches. The worst thing about it is that he's british and I live in the UK (most of the time) and the press just never shut up about him. Not just the tabloids but magazines like Autocar - I remember they had a story on the front cover that stated "Schumacher V Hamilton - Who is the greatest?" Seriously, Who are they kidding? Nothing would make me happier than to see Lewis lose the championship again this year.
     
  5. ScuderiaRossa

    ScuderiaRossa Formula 3
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    LH losing the WDC last year, I feel, makes more of a statement about him than anything else ever could. F1 powers that be in his corner, top team focused solely on him, highly competitive car, natural ability, admiration and support of an entire nation and most of the racing world, and he still fell short.

    And this year is not a runaway for him either...
     
  6. CornersWell

    CornersWell F1 Rookie

    Nov 24, 2004
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    Better to be thought of as a fool, than it is to open one's mouth and prove them right.

    Let the driving do the talking. Keep the pie hole zipped.

    CW
     
  7. LetsJet

    LetsJet F1 Veteran
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    Why do you ask him these questions? You know what he's going to say. I personally don't have an issue with it. Though I would like to see just how great he is in a Honda or another team a bit lower on the cars capabilities. Then his comments would mean more to me. I think he's a good driver, but he was handed a gift being on the Mclaren team.
     
  8. Casino Square

    Casino Square Formula 3
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    ....good grief....take a breath...
     
  9. Tobias

    Tobias Formula 3

    May 22, 2004
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    Enjoyed the article. Those are some nasty quotes from Lewis. Yuck!
     
  10. Drive550PFB

    Drive550PFB Two Time F1 World Champ

    Well said about LH. And Sanjaya, didn't he drive for Minardi (kidding).
     
  11. RP

    RP F1 World Champ

    Feb 9, 2005
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    #11 RP, Sep 17, 2008
    Last edited: Sep 17, 2008
    First of all Jim is the messenger, he is only posting someone else's words. Don't shoot the messenger.

    Second, I have never read all of Hamilton's quotes all in one place. This particular article did miss the "moral right" to the WDC comment of recent. So to see all of this in one place did cause me to raise my eyebrows with amazement.

    Does this mean I was wrong, that Hamilton's words really are those of an arrogant wanker and not some kid that has not quite grown up yet? I keep hoping that if one reads between the lines, the black and white of print, that one can say that Hamilton is just being honest with his feelings in a childish immature way. That he really is a nice guy. But for him to express these words publically, and with words that make him appear to walk on water, or in this case, motor oil, I am beginning to lean in the direction of wanker.

    Its either one or the other, immature or an actual wanker. If the words of Hamilton quoted in this ariticle are true and he means them, if you are honest with yourself, there is no in between. I tire of the thinking that he is only expressing self confidence, give me a break, he can do that without appearing self absorbed. He has won no F1 championship as of yet. When he does, he can be self congratulatory. I believe most people like their champions to have humility. Until then he needs to just shut up and perform.

    I apologize to my British friends, but I hope Hamilton loses the WDC, now and always, he does not "morally deserve" it as he has been quoted to suggest. Because to me if he is serious with his words, he truly is a wanker. I would question why you would think differently.
     
  12. wetpet

    wetpet F1 World Champ
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    did he just say hamilton had a disappointing first year?
     
  13. anguruso

    anguruso Formula Junior

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    Hamilton is pretty damn arrogant, but I think he has provided 30% of the overtaking this year, so at least he has a reason to be arrogant.
     
  14. Bas

    Bas Four Time F1 World Champ

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    I often enjoy to see hamilton racing (when he doesnt push others of the track....), but i dont like how cocky he is and what he says.
     
  15. SRT Mike

    SRT Mike Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Newsflash!

    This just in...

    F1 Driver has a big ego and thinks he's a great driver!

    Fans gasp in disbelief!
     
  16. 355

    355 F1 Rookie
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    I also have some "big" attributes but I dont go to the media and tell everyone. :)
     
  17. racerx3317

    racerx3317 F1 Veteran

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    No, it's more like, F1 driver has a big ego and thinks he's the greatest of all drivers and is stupid enough to tell the press. He's an cocky little s*** and I'll be cheering against him for all his career.
     
  18. Remy Zero

    Remy Zero Two Time F1 World Champ

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    i'd rather vote for Sanjay.
     
  19. ferraridude615

    ferraridude615 F1 Veteran

    May 4, 2006
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    Lewis is an arrogant smug driver who thinks he is God's gift to Formula One and the world. I used to like him as a driver but about 5 races in last year his ego jumped up about 5 levels to the point he seems to be a ****head. The rest of the F1 drivers combined don't have half the ego of Lewis.

    A driver comparing themselves to Michael Schumacher is like a Christian comparing themselves to Jesus.
     
  20. kraftwerk

    kraftwerk Two Time F1 World Champ

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    LMAO....

    He also ate my HAMSTER.

    BOO HOO!! I suggest you lot whining watch another sport like crown green bowling.
     
  21. racerx3317

    racerx3317 F1 Veteran

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    What in the hell is that Steve?
     
  22. SRT Mike

    SRT Mike Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Nobody cares about your manboobs Franco... we don't near to hear about them! :D
     
  23. SRT Mike

    SRT Mike Two Time F1 World Champ

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    Let us know where you find the quote of him saying he's the "greatest of all drivers"... after all, I wouldn't want to think you applied that label yourself or anything ;)
     
  24. TcpSec

    TcpSec Formula Junior

    Feb 8, 2004
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    Are you going to go through life pissed off like this? Not good!!

    BTW, has anyone else noticed how so many posters from this side of the pond are going off on LH? Must be due to the Wall St and RE meltdown.
     
  25. racerx3317

    racerx3317 F1 Veteran

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    Let me know when you find the quote where I said he said that!
     

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