New Grand Prix Season Is Almost Upon Us!!!

[Hotschi]

He's champion now. Webber out - with such a last season I guess he is ever more looking forward to leave.

Who can really say which driver is the best one ever. Depends on how you look at it. There's so much one can take as a measurement; championships, winning races, fastest laps, number of seasons divided by victories etc etc.

Let's face it; you have to be a egotistical perfectionist to be on the top. This doesn't make one necessarily sympathetic to the generel fans of the sports, but it's the prize for success. ALain Prost, Ayrton Senna, James Hunt, Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel, Hamilton, Niki Lauda, Fernando Alonso certainly ALL fill into this category. Most, if not all of them, never or seldom had a decent team mate (Prost and Senna were team mates, but it was, well, war-like) - you cannot put two alpha-males into a team and expect all out success.

Next year Ferrari (Alonso, Raikkonen) will be interesting - that is, if the car has anything better to offer than tradition or a polished red colour.

[warspite1]

I think the question of who is the best ever driver can never really be answered – but these sort of lists are always fun to do!

Any list has to be based on perceived driving ability, otherwise it would just be a list of World Champions in order of victories – but how many people around now, ever saw Fangio or Ascari?

There was the possibility of multiple victories in more dangerous times – Fangio, Brabham and Stewart – but careers tended to be shorter. How many championships would Ascari or Clark have won?

I completely agree that you need a massive ego and total self-belief to be a great – there is a saying that good guys never win in F1.

I think in the “old days”, most drivers had “decent” team mates though. If you look at the list you wrote: Prost/Senna and Prost/Lauda; Senna/Prost; Hamilton/Alonso. The two obvious omissions are Vettel and Schumacher (but that depends on where you rank their team mates of course).

And who is to say Ferrari or Red Bull were wrong? I agree it makes sense for teams (if not the fans) to have a No.1 and a No.2. Look at how Hamilton/Alonso and Mansell/Piquet lost titles that they would not have if there was a clear No.1 policy.

I personally see no merit in a top 10 that includes drivers I never saw race (and thus can only go on statistics). Therefore my top 10 covers drivers from 1982 only.

1. Ayrton Senna
2. Michael Schumacher
3. Alain Prost
4. Sebastian Vettel
5. Fernando Alonso
6. Niki Lauda
7. Nigel Mansell
8. Mika Hakkinen
9. Lewis Hamilton
10. Nelson Piquet


Edit: Spelling [8|]

[Hotschi]

OOoops what an embarassing oversight by me, Prost's team-mates! [X(]

Would be interesting to compile some statistic of "Who won the championship despite having to deal with a team mate who is at the same level" or something. And another of "Who won the championship with the luck of having an adjutant in the team"...

[warspite1]

Rush is coming out on DVD on the 27th January [:)]

Pre-order in place - can't wait to see this again!

[warspite1]

Looks like the noses of the cars will remain ugly for next season unfortunately....

http://www.mclaren.com/formula1/car/

[warspite1]

So the first test session of the season is over and....

...could it be too much to hope? Is the Red Bull going to struggle this year?

Oh please, lets hope so...

[Orm]

I do not understand this sport. [:(]

No offense intended.

[warspite1]

No offence taken - either you like it or you don't [:)]

[Orm]

I want to like it but I just do not see it. It all looks the same to me. I am sure it takes great skill to drive those cars. And it is probably fun to do so. But watching them do it when so little happens, that I can see, makes me fall asleep.

[Hotschi]

Actually, being able to fall asleep is why I like watching the races! [:D] Usually, it goes like this; I watch the qualification, then on race-day the pre-race stuff, the start of the race, and when the first round of pit-stops is over, I get tired. Then, close to end of race I wake up again and watch who's winning. More often than not, I miss the finish - Formula 1, perfect for a afternoon nap! [:D]

I like this sport since I was a small boy, back when Lauda and Hunt raced (No I won't ever watch "Rush", not even when it's on telly). I have some sort of connection to this sport, even now. My father-in-law was the mechanic of Jochen Rindt before his F1 career. I've met the "expert-on-everything", Niki Lauda, several times on a local airport when he was still the owner of the FlyNiki airine on purely professional occasions (I wish I wouldn't have met him, I worked at that airport).

This year, with the Austrian GP back, my father-in-law will attend the race and due to his connections has entry to the paddock - he asked me whether I want to go there too, but at the same date my wife has a meeting with some of her knitting-friends in Germany. So I will not be there - have to keep our little son happy at home.

I take it easy, just another opportunity for a afternoon nap! [:D]

[warspite1]

Why won't you watch Rush? Its a superb film.

[Gilmer]

I've been loving watching F1 since the 80s and I was a teenager. I didn't know the difference between F1 and Indy and loved both, but F1 was always a favorite. Of course, back then, it seems like the only race I ever got to watch was Gran Prix of Monaco.

[Hotschi]

Why won't you watch Rush? Its a superb film.

Because it's about NIki Lauda.

Lauda is omnipresent in the media here, he's got an opinion on everything and of course claims only his opinion is the correct one. And of course, he gets asked by the media here on pretty much about everything. And he changes his opinions like his socks every day.

Best example; when that volcano in Iceland broke out, whatshisname, Eyafjallakjodoodle [:D] there was a period when flights were prohibited througout most of Europe. Lauda, when asked, said this was the right decision, as it was "logical". A couple of days later, he was an outspoken critic of this same suspension of flights, as it was "logical" to continue flights...

Sometimes, I think that even when 3 chickens roll over and die on some odd farm in the remotest Corner of Austria, Lauda will get asked by some local newsman why this happened. And of course, Lauda will issue his opinion, which of course will be "logical" and the only correct one. Lauda, Austria's "expert-on-everything"...

Long story short, he gets on my nerves [:D]

[Orm]

ORIGINAL: Hotschi

Long story short, he gets on my nerves [:D]

Got it. [:)]

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Hotschi

Why won't you watch Rush? Its a superb film.

And of course, Lauda will issue his opinion, which of course will be "logical" and the only correct one. Lauda, Austria's "expert-on-everything"...

warspite1

Yes, that came out in the film too [:)]

[Orm]

I've been planning on seeing Rush since you told us about the film. [:)]

[warspite1]

Anyone watch the Grand Prix Legends programs on Sky? The one with Prost was interesting. He maintains he got unfavourable treatment from Honda when at McLaren, but Gordon Murray (in a separate program) vehemently denies it....

Would love to know the truth.

[warspite1]

Red Bull still having probs....

...YES!!!!!

[TulliusDetritus]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Red Bull still having probs....

...YES!!!!!

Ha! Just like every year [:D]

In fact they even have these so-called "problems" on the first half dozen races. And then somehow... they always manage to easily bag the championship...

Go Vettel go!

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: TulliusDetritus

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Red Bull still having probs....

...YES!!!!!

Ha! Just like every year [:D]

In fact they even have these so-called "problems" on the first half dozen races. And then somehow... they always manage to easily bag the championship...

Go Vettel go!

warspite1

Nah - they are always there or thereabouts. They've never had this level of problems.