<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(phleg @ Oct 26 2007, 10:20 PM) [snapback]97249[/snapback]<div class='quotemain'>
1.You think Alonso could beat Hamilton next year if they were still teammates?
2.I think Lewis can only go from strength to strength, KR and FA have been relatively level all season, showing their experience in some races e.g. FA in Sepang, Kimi in France. Lewis has been doing things he REALLY shouldn't be doing.
All this tyre crap about Lewis has been blown out of proportion, didn't Bridgestone admit his tyre in Turkey was a dummy? And China, well it was his fault, but he needed to push it that far to build up his advantage, look at how big the gap was between him and Alonso before the crap laps started.
1. I think he can. Whether he will or won't remains to be seen.
2. Lewis screwed up BIG TIME when it mattered most. I guess that's what seperates rookies from experienced drivers. Lewis drove an amazing season. For sure he screwed up at the end, but still he impressed me most this season. He will only get better in the future, those last 2 races made him stronger I think. Had he won the title it would have been great, but I think losing out is the best think for his career, and maybe also for the sport, cause..a rookie winning in his first ever F1 season, and beating his teammate, the reigning champ, on the way, would have been..
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Orrmate @ Oct 27 2007, 12:20 AM) [snapback]97255[/snapback]<div class='quotemain'>
1.I'm still of the belief that Alonso is the best all round driver on the grid, and to look at it another way, can you imagine going to work in such a hostile environment? To say he won 4 races and very nearly the title, despite his relationship with the team, imo, shows just how talented he is. Frustratingly, is all too often masked thanks to all the bitching and whining he does. Even with Renault towards the end of 2006 he accused them of not wanting him to win the title
2.There are some things you have to bear in mind when saying things like this. How many drivers walked into a championship winning car in their first season? Villeneuve, for one, and he was just as impressive as Lewis in his first year (check the stats if you don't believe me, 4 wins, second in the WDC), and the other that springs to mind is Damon Hill, who didn't do bad either (3 wins, 3rd in the WDC, although he did 8 races in a pretty ..... Brabham the year before, so this ones debateable). I'm sure there are a few more that I can't remember off the top of my head. Most of the succesful drivers before Lewis have had to work their way up, and thats how it should be imo.
If it were up to me, I'd have a rule where drivers had to spend at least a season in a lower car. They shouldnt just walk into a top team imo, it undermines the championship and it can seriously screw up the driver.
1. Alonso did a very good job indeed. He almost won the title, but maybe it's also good he didn't. Alonso already showed us he can win a title. He did that when he drove for Renault, but obviously back then things were more easy for him. He was Flavio's favourite, like Lewis is Ron's favourite. It's maybe good for him to experience how it feels when you're not the number one, when you're not the favourite, when you actually have to battle with your teammate for the ''number 1'' position. I can understand him for not liking it when Lewis beat him, and when things weren't going so easy like before. Having a number one in a team is smart of course, cause it maximizes your chances of winning the title. Look at Renault in 05 and 06 when FA won the title there. Look at MS and his career. I rather see 2 drivers fight for the ''number 1'' status, BUT I can understand why they would want to have a number one in a team, like MS always was (well apart from his first seasons maybe), but the difference is, Michael never complained when things didn't go well, Fernando seems to complain when things don't go his way, which is a shame. Having said this, I do think he did a good job this season, he only lost out by one point!
2. I can understand your point. I also rather see drivers work their way to the top, but this is just the way it is. Lewis proved in his pre-f1 career that he IS worthy of driving for a top team. I do realize that success in a driver's pre-f1 career isnt any guarantee, but he got the chance, and he did a great job. Still I would like to see him when things dont go too well. I dont wish him any badluck, but it's a lot more easy to deliver when you have a fast, reliable, winning able car. I want to see if he can pull of amazing drives, if the car isnt that fast. The great ones can make that difference, winning from pole is one thing, but actually fighting your way back to 1st place, is an even better way of earning that bit of extra respect, imo!
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(phleg @ Oct 28 2007, 06:16 PM) [snapback]97445[/snapback]<div class='quotemain'>
1. Did JV have to contend with a double world champion who is regarded by many as one of the best drivers on the grid? If you tell me "Oh he had to contend with a team that was against him", well who's fault was that? And that Hamilton got preferential treatment from Ron Dennis, well isn't it fair considering the HUGE amount of favorable treatment Alonso got from Flavio, at the expense of poor Fisi? What I meant was an example such as Canada, where he was regularly prancing off into the distance by 20seconds each time, before the safety car came out and annulled it, he shouldn't be winning by vast margins at circuits he's never visited before.
2. Well these aren't the 80's and early 90's anymore, times change. Should we be scornful of the fact Lewis was gutsy enough to ask RD for a McLaren contract at age 12? And we should be glad you don't make the rules, otherwise we wouldn't have had one of the best seasons in a LONG time.
3.Btw... predictions for next year?
These are mine based pre-testing.
1. Lewis (If McLaren break the good car- bad car cycle)
2. Kimi (If Ferrari keep up their unreliability)
3. Alonso (if he skulks off back to Renault, or at McLaren where he would probably be made an obvious No.2)
4. Heidfeld ( I want BMW to come good)
1. That's some good points you're making!! I know people think the hype around Lewis is too big, but it's understandable. Like you said, he joined Mclaren, he had to drive with Fernando Alonso as his teammate, a double time champ. You would think Alonso would beat him, that's what we all thought!! But no, Lewis wasn't there to play 2nd fiddle, nor to ''just learn'' from the champ, no..he was there to win races, beat his teammate, with the goal to win the title. Hadn't he screwed up, he would have done just that. When I look back now, I still cant believe it. For sure Fernando didn't feel at home, but he still is good enough to beat Lewis, or at least he should have been. That's what makes you a pro..you have to deal with these circumstances. I guess he didn't expect to (almost) get beaten by a rookie, and can we really blame him???? No, we cant, cause if someone had predicted this, that person would have been called CRAZY!!
2. Eventhough I prefer it when someone has to work his way to the top, I do agree with you on this. It's not without reason they gave him a top seat, he proved us he's a real winner. He won everything he competed in, and that just can't be pure luck. He's just that good.
3. My predictions:
Ah...that's difficult!!
Depends on what will happen. Will FA stay where he is?? If he'll go back to ''Daddy Flavio'' he wont win the title I think, cause I dont think they'll be that good next year, I could be wrong of course. If Mclaren will be strong again, Lewis will be a contencer again. Same goes for Raikkonen.
I'm gonna wait with my predictions!!! I still have to ''recover'' from this season
