One vote, voters names will be visible for a change (come on, don't be shy ).
I would have voted for Revere but as he said "Indeed, my unwillingness to engage in "dirty pool" is the ONLY reason I'm not driving in Formula 1 today".
Standings as of 9/20/2007
01 Lewis Hamilton 97
02 Fernando Alonso 95
03 Kimi Räikkönen 84
04 Felipe Massa 77
05 Nick Heidfeld 56
06 Robert Kubica 33
07 Heikki Kovalainen 22
08 Giancarlo Fisichella 17
09 Nico Rosberg 15
10 Alexander Wurz 13
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"Think very carefully, because if you ever start, you will never be able to leave it alone" Sir Donald Campbell, CBE
Gotta go to Fernando... Guy knows how to get it done when push comes to shove. Keep in mind this is the guy that sent Schumacher off into retirement without one last title. I don't think Hamilton really understands what the Spanish bull can be like when he takes the corks off the tips of his horns.
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You wanna beat this guy so bad to prove yourself... Two individuals in two different lanes trying to win... Its the guy that gets there first... Thats the reason I breathe, and without it I'm just another guy. But out there in that moment, put your mind in the zone and let it be what it will be. We call it destiny. I need that win for my team, my family, my sponsors, and for myself. I'm gonna get it. -14 time NHRA Funnycar Champion John Force
I think it's up to luck, mainly; but my money would go with Alonso. Who knows what Hamilton might get up to, though, after that last push off. Will he start to play chicken a la Prost/Senna? Wonderful how McLaren breeds such team spirit!
I think it's up to luck, mainly; but my money would go with Alonso. Who knows what Hamilton might get up to, though, after that last push off. Will he start to play chicken a la Prost/Senna? Wonderful how McLaren breeds such team spirit!
As long as they're comfortably ahead of Kimi, all Lewis would need to do is stay one point ahead into the final race and then take Alonso out. A far cry from the day when Moss successfully lead the lobbying to have points restored to his rival Hawthorn for what he felt was an unfair penalty, only to end up losing the World Championship by a single point.
__________________ "All things are ready if our minds be so." -- Henry V
As long as they're comfortably ahead of Kimi, all Lewis would need to do is stay one point ahead into the final race and then take Alonso out.
would not surprise me if he in fact did that, i for one do not think ole lewis is as much a gentlemen as some suspect.
We shall see after Japan how it sits, each race now has a huge effect, alonso needs to qualify and finish ahead of lewis or it will be doubtful, after that. Of course if Lewis makes a big mistake which he has not so far, game over.
The Brit bookies have Alonso as the favorite on average, but there certainly isn't a big consensus with many bookmakers varying widely on the odds.
Betting odds as of today, odds are an average of 14 different bookmakers.
Alonso 1/1
Lewis 7/4
Kimi 8/1
Japan GP:
Kimi 28/17
Alonso 15/8
lewis 4/1
As a side note, some MCL constructor champ bettors were refunded their money in light of the latest ruling striping MCL of their points.
Thanks for the nod, Doug. In addition to refusing to engage in "dirty pool," it would appear that I have zero World Championship points.
Where is this "dirty pool" that Revere is unwilling to get engaged in? Of course, understandably, an engagement is a special event, and if you were going to plan it for a pool, you would want it to be pretty clean, even luxurious I imagine. All that algae and mildew could sure ruin the moment. Although a few autumn leaves scattered on the surface could add some seasonal atmosphere...
Revere, are congratulations in order?
__________________ "All things are ready if our minds be so." -- Henry V
I was just watching the start to Belgium again, and I'm open to a rethink.
I think we're going to see what L.H. is made of now. I think he was probably a little shocked by the obviously hostile push-off (I may be on the wrong thread here). Anyways, I still think that he is unmatched in his traffic skills, even though he's going to qualify behind Alonso from now on thanks to Alonso refusing to share his superior set-ups from now on.
But still, if it comes down to duelling next to each other, I think Hamilton might win. Interestingly, he declined to push Alonso off the way he got pushed off in the second turn at Belgium, before Alonso took off for good.
Anyways, if he's got real cojones, he may just drop the Mr. Nice Guy act once and for all and really get nasty on track (as opposed to just swearing at Ron Dennis behind the scenes).
I think Hamilton's ability in traffic is no greater than Alonso's. Keep in mind that all of the great drives through traffic of Hamilton's career thus far have been in GP2 cars that have an inordinate amount of downforce maintained even in an aero wash behind another car. We haven't really seen him in a prolonged wheel to wheel dice with anyone other than Kimi in Malaysia, nor have we actually seen him pull any mega overtaking maneuvers on competitive cars other than at the start or right after pitstops. Even then, the one great mid-race overtaking move he had on Raikkonen at Monza could arguably be attributed to Kimi's neck being unable to hold his head up under breaking after his crash.
In short, we haven't seen the kind of demoralizing hunting that Alonso has shown time and time again in F1. In Germany, Alonso was over ten seconds back, and as the car came to him he reeled Massa in and then made an opportunity for himself. Its that kind of crushingly consistent hunt-down that I don't think Lewis has in him at the moment. Alonso is used to fighting a certain M. Schumacher and his FIA/Ferrari compatriots in order to achieve championships, whereas Lewis is used to racing for the best team Mclaren's money could buy him a seat in. I wonder which is better preparation for a head to head fight? My money is on the guy who beat the legend.
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You wanna beat this guy so bad to prove yourself... Two individuals in two different lanes trying to win... Its the guy that gets there first... Thats the reason I breathe, and without it I'm just another guy. But out there in that moment, put your mind in the zone and let it be what it will be. We call it destiny. I need that win for my team, my family, my sponsors, and for myself. I'm gonna get it. -14 time NHRA Funnycar Champion John Force
Gotta disagree, I remember being shocked at the difference between the two, and now I don't remember what race it was, but Alonso spent FOREVER getting around Nick Heidfeld, while in that same race, Hamilton came out of the pits behind Kubica, and took two turns to pass him definitively, if was as stunning a comparison of the two mens' talents as you could ask for, both behind the same car, same race, same setup. Let's not even get into Alonso's desperate attempts at passes at turn one of the Canadian GP. You can always make up reasons why Hamilton is so successful, i.e. Kimi's bad neck, but somehow, Hamilton can always pull it off, and his blocking skill is preternatural, he moves in front of where you want to go before you even thought of going there. Let's not forget his incredible performance, keeping both Ferraris behind him, in his second Grand Prix ever! No, Alonso gets desperate, passionate, and sloppy in his passing, while Hamilton has this extraordinary talent.
Gotta disagree, I remember being shocked at the difference between the two, and now I don't remember what race it was, but Alonso spent FOREVER getting around Nick Heidfeld, while in that same race, Hamilton came out of the pits behind Kubica, and took two turns to pass him definitively, if was as stunning a comparison of the two mens' talents as you could ask for, both behind the same car, same race, same setup. Let's not even get into Alonso's desperate attempts at passes at turn one of the Canadian GP. You can always make up reasons why Hamilton is so successful, i.e. Kimi's bad neck, but somehow, Hamilton can always pull it off, and his blocking skill is preternatural, he moves in front of where you want to go before you even thought of going there. Let's not forget his incredible performance, keeping both Ferraris behind him, in his second Grand Prix ever! No, Alonso gets desperate, passionate, and sloppy in his passing, while Hamilton has this extraordinary talent.
i think their passing/traffic abilities are both very good but their styles are different. It really depends on the situation as to who would have an edge. In Montreal it has been said that Alonso had trouble with the new for him CI brakes for that race vs hitco which he has always used, of course he still should have been able to overcome that hurdle. Starting with the British GP he demanded hitco on his car and any braking issues have disappeared, he did use CI for Monza because of the extreme heat under braking but obviously did well.
Well with the state of F-1 passing we will probably be cheated out of any real duels with these two, except for the first few turns. In addition I don't really think Alonso has a lock on qualifying ahead of lewis just because of his setups, i doubt it is that simple but we will never know how much difference that made for sure. Japan will be new for both drivers and the teams so it could put them even going in. If we believe Alonso is better at setting up a car at a new track then he has the edge but it is very easy to go in the wrong direction with setup at a new track, if either one does that it will be hard to recover, especially with no sharing. It sure would be ironic if lewis hits it dead on and Alonso struggles...talk about payback!!
Yep! I'm hoping that the pretty unique nature of Fuji will give us a great race. A straight that's almost 1.5km long, and some pretty twisty corners with weird camber create opposite demands in terms of aero. Here's hoping they go for a low downforce setup which may give us a bit of sliding around to make things interesting...
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You wanna beat this guy so bad to prove yourself... Two individuals in two different lanes trying to win... Its the guy that gets there first... Thats the reason I breathe, and without it I'm just another guy. But out there in that moment, put your mind in the zone and let it be what it will be. We call it destiny. I need that win for my team, my family, my sponsors, and for myself. I'm gonna get it. -14 time NHRA Funnycar Champion John Force
My vote is for Hamilton. In both of Alonso's championships he never had to come from behind and win, he built up a big lead, and then just protected it. That's what Hamilton is doing now, but with a smaller lead. Looking back at Alonso's championships, in 2005 he was basically unchallenged. Ferrari was nowhere, and Kimi always broke down. In 2006, it took Ferrari half the year to get up to speed, during which time Alonso pulled out a nice lead. At the end of the season Schumacher almost reeled him in and beat him. Alonso has also never had a team mate that was equal, or faster than him. I think that Hamilton is as good as Alonso right now, and could be better once he has more experience. Also, right now it seems that Alonso is shooting himself in the head every chance he gets with his team, so if I was McLaren, I'd give the advantage to Hamilton if I could.
Mid-Corner Speed Master / Advanced Member (1,000+ Posts)
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Re: Who Will be the 2007 F1 World Champ?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Slowhands
As long as they're comfortably ahead of Kimi, all Lewis would need to do is stay one point ahead into the final race and then take Alonso out.
How can I be this old and this naive at the same time?? Slowhands is right, of course, but how cool would it be if they just raced each other to see who won?? Senna v. Prost; Schumacher v. Hill; Schumacher v. Herbert; Schumacher v, Villeneuve; Schumacher v. Alonso....hmmm.
Anyway, the days of Moss/Hawthorne are long gone. Kinda like terrorists. Show a little chivalry, never mind consideration, and you set yourself up as a vulnerable target for your enemies. And it wins you championships, no less.
I wuz born 40 years too late.
Driving experience at this level - Alonso; Setup skill - Alonso; Driving performance this year - Hamilton; Driving in traffic - Hamilton; Ruthlessness (so far) - Alonso; Mistakes (so far) - Alonso; Cussing out the boss- Hamilton;
Giving up the boss to the tune of $100 mil.-Alonso
Advantage...drum roll....Hamilton.
__________________
QUALIFICATIONS 1987: Davidson: "Sammy Swindell's car runs a normally aspirated stock-block engine with Pontiac heads. It was developed by John Buttera." Palmer: "Wow, yeah, he used to play the sax with Louis Prima." Davidson: "That was Sam Butera." Palmer: "Oh, yeah."
Last edited by oldredracer; 09-24-2007 at 09:14 AM.
....Driving experience at this level - Alonso; Setup skill - Alonso; Driving performance this year - Hamilton; Driving in traffic - Hamilton; Ruthlessness (so far) - Alonso; Mistakes (so far) - Alonso; Cussing out the boss- Hamilton;
Giving up the boss to the tune of $100 mil.-Alonso
Advantage...drum roll....Hamilton.
LOL Oldred
Possible advantage Kimi - I am still going with the Under-Finn (even tho current avatar might suggest otherwise ). As noted above, these 2 may screw up their races with their squabblin' - to the advantage of Kimi, who is a powerful force to be reckoned with in an F1 car. No fat lady heard yet.
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"Think very carefully, because if you ever start, you will never be able to leave it alone" Sir Donald Campbell, CBE
Now THAT would be spite! One of those two crashing the other out intentionally, not to make sure he remained first, but to make sure that he came in second to Kimi Raikkonen instead of to his teammate!
I'd like to see Kimi or Massa take it, of the two I think Kimi is the most likely, but I have to say that pressed I don't see a Ferrari winning it, perhaps not even in the second spot.
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Fast, cheap, realiable. Pick any two.
I'd like to see Kimi or Massa take it, of the two I think Kimi is the most likely, but I have to say that pressed I don't see a Ferrari winning it, perhaps not even in the second spot.
I think McL is due for an engine grenade, either driver, that would throw things off....has to happen sometime.
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"Think very carefully, because if you ever start, you will never be able to leave it alone" Sir Donald Campbell, CBE
I just pray for good close racing... God I hate soul-less races and championships determined by pit stop strategy.
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You draw 'em a picture and they eat the crayons... (Duck Waddle commenting on the creative ways some people interpret driving instruction.)
Possible advantage Kimi - I am still going with the Under-Finn (even tho current avatar might suggest otherwise ). As noted above, these 2 may screw up their races with their squabblin' - to the advantage of Kimi, who is a powerful force to be reckoned with in an F1 car. No fat lady heard yet.
I think McL is due for an engine grenade, either driver, that would throw things off....has to happen sometime.
Well, Doug, I don't know what Native American or Central Asian vision dust you've been smokin', or if in your advancing years you have unearthed a psychic channel to the Oracle of Delphi, but when you first posted your poll vote I thought you were being ridiculously sentimental, rooting for someone who was so far out of the lead. Well, who woulda THUNK it??!? It's KIMI!!!!!!
To tell you the truth, it is perfect that he is the champion. He just kept his head down and did his job while Alonso and Hamilton were acting like children. To see Kimi and Massa act like adults, professionals, and TEAMMATES was refreshing. Kimi, through his words and body language clearly acknowledging the sacrifice Massa made to allow him to finish in front, and Massa putting aside his own fiercely competitive spirit and desire for a win in front of his home crowd, in a race in which he had both the car and the position to do it -- wow. I not only became a Kimi fan this year, but now more than ever a Massa fan. I'll be pulling for him next year.
__________________ "All things are ready if our minds be so." -- Henry V
Now the Uber Finn - the fat lady has sung, an amazing championship. Lewis was fantastic, especially when you add the additonal pressure of the politics, espionage, etc. he had to shoulder. He will be deadly next year. Favorite newer driver? Rbt Kubica, exciting driver, Mr. Nice Guy attitude, put some $$ on Ole Robert as Hobbs would say, big talent there. Really enjoy having Massa in the mix, adds a lot of positive to the game. Not an Alonso fan but his talent is huge as well, seems like the squabblin' did hurt after all.
Kinda fun without Schui around, eh? Hey kopperslip, nice call in the poll buddy
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"Think very carefully, because if you ever start, you will never be able to leave it alone" Sir Donald Campbell, CBE
The other thing I liked about that race was that there was plenty of real racing action, rather than the dull procession that F1 can frequently be. Thankfully there are still a few of the old-school natural terrain road courses like Interlagos on the schedule.
__________________ "All things are ready if our minds be so." -- Henry V
Hamilton finally blinked and showed his rookiness both in China and Brazil. Taking nothing from him... Hamilton made the single greatest start to an F1 career ever seen and single-handedly erased Shuey from our collective consciousness.
Alonso was cursed karmically for his boorish behavior and cheating with the Ferrari info.
Kimi's been the bridesmaid so many times it's great to see his outstanding driving finally rewarded with some good luck as well.
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You draw 'em a picture and they eat the crayons... (Duck Waddle commenting on the creative ways some people interpret driving instruction.)
....To see Kimi and Massa act like adults, professionals, and TEAMMATES was refreshing. Kimi, through his words and body language clearly acknowledging the sacrifice Massa made to allow him to finish in front, and Massa putting aside his own fiercely competitive spirit and desire for a win in front of his home crowd, in a race in which he had both the car and the position to do it -- wow. I not only became a Kimi fan this year, but now more than ever a Massa fan. I'll be pulling for him next year.
Really well put Harsha.
This might be called "The Last Laugh"
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"Think very carefully, because if you ever start, you will never be able to leave it alone" Sir Donald Campbell, CBE
that whooshing sound you're hearing could be the anvil dropping from the sky that Hobbs kept talking about. Just off the presses:
REPORT: New Debate About F1 Title Result Written by: RACER staffSao Paulo, Brazil – 10/21/2007
Kimi Raikkonen’s World Championship victory was cast into doubt when the FIA confirmed that the fuel temperatures of the BMW Sauber and Williams cars that finished fourth, fifth and sixth in the Brazilian Grand Prix were outside the regulations during the course of the race, and may be subject to disqualification. If that happens, Lewis Hamilton's McLaren would be elevated to fourth place, making him World Champion.
As the race stewards continue to investigate the matter to decide on whether or not a punishment is necessary, a statement issued by technical delegate Jo Bauer revealed the extent of the temperature variation of the cars involved.
Article 6.5.5 of the Formula 1 technical regulations states: "No fuel on board the car may be more than 10 degrees centigrade below ambient temperature."
The statement issued by Bauer showed that Heidfeld's fuel was 13 degrees centigrade lower than ambient at his first stop and 12 degrees centigrade lower at his second stop. Robert Kubica's fuel varied by 14 degrees, 13 degrees and 13 degrees at his three stops; Nico Rosberg's fuel was 13 degrees and 12 degrees out at his two stops and Kazuki Nakajima's was 12 degrees out at his first stop. His second stop was inside the 10-degree limit.
Spyker technical chief Mike Gascoyne said he believed the variation would have provided a performance advantage.
"It can be five to 10 horsepower easily," he told autosport.com. "The car is producing a performance advantage during the race. If they dump fuel in that is below the limit, it is an illegal performance advantage. They should be excluded from the event, there is absolutely no doubt."
The implications of a disqualification for the BMW and Williams drivers would be huge, as it could potentially move Lewis Hamilton up the order into fourth place. If this were to happen, Hamilton would be crowned World Champion.
__________________ "All things are ready if our minds be so." -- Henry V
that whooshing sound you're hearing could be the anvil dropping from the sky that Hobbs kept talking about. Just off the presses:
REPORT: New Debate About F1 Title Result Written by: RACER staffSao Paulo, Brazil – 10/21/2007
Kimi Raikkonen’s World Championship victory was cast into doubt when the FIA confirmed that the fuel temperatures of the BMW Sauber and Williams cars that finished fourth, fifth and sixth in the Brazilian Grand Prix were outside the regulations during the course of the race, and may be subject to disqualification. If that happens, Lewis Hamilton's McLaren would be elevated to fourth place, making him World Champion...
The implications of a disqualification for the BMW and Williams drivers would be huge, as it could potentially move Lewis Hamilton up the order into fourth place. If this were to happen, Hamilton would be crowned World Champion.
My humble opinion, but they would complete idiots to do so after the fact. If this was a mission-critical regulation, why did they not check the fuel temperature before the race? They no doubt check the chemistry in advance. I've said this before, but in 135 years, they've NEVER taken down the number of the first horse to cross the finish line in the Kentucky Derby. The FIA could learn something from that.
BMW Sauber and Williams under investigation - updated
The BMW Sauber and Williams teams have escaped penalty after being investigated by Brazilian Grand Prix stewards over fuel irregularities on their cars at the end of Sunday’s Interlagos race.
Under Formula One racing’s technical regulations fuel temperatures are not allowed to fall more than 10 degrees Celsius below ambient air temperature at any time. According to FIA data, Williams and BMW Sauber exceeded this range during the race, but after lengthy deliberations stewards chose not to impose sanctions.
Nico Rosberg finished fourth for Williams, with Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld fifth and sixth respectively for BMW Sauber. Kazuki Nakajima came home tenth in his Formula One race debut with Williams.
Very happy for Kimi as I picked him last year in all the wrong (right) races to deny me an Fantasy F1 podium. He earned this year's title BIG TIME.
Great rookie of the year season for Hamilton. But let me go out on a limb here and suggest that he will NOT be the front runner next year. A major talent - yes. Great for the sport - you bet. But Nico is a major talent and if he gets Alonso's seat will be the driver to beat next year alongside Massa and Kimi. If BMW makes progress look for Ole Robert as well. He's the first rookie (I know not technically) that I've seen that doesn't run into people. McLaren may have a huge falloff given their financial situation and BMW, Williams, Red Bull, and Renault could all move into the top tier next year with a little luck.
[quote=dalyduo]Hamilton made the single greatest start to an F1 career ever seen and single-handedly erased Shuey from our collective consciousness.
[quote]
Hamilton did make an amazing debut, but I don't think he made people forget Schumacher. Hamilton has the potential to be great, but isn't there yet IMO. I have yet to see him win in a car that shouldn't win, or put in a fantastic drive which lets him win a race that he shouldn't have won.
Mid-Corner Speed Master / Advanced Member (1,000+ Posts)
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Re: Who Will be the 2007 F1 World Champ?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Slowhands
As long as they're comfortably ahead of Kimi, all Lewis would need to do is stay one point ahead into the final race and then take Alonso out. A far cry from the day when Moss successfully lead the lobbying to have points restored to his rival Hawthorn for what he felt was an unfair penalty, only to end up losing the World Championship by a single point.
Well, the Kimster was ahead but all Louie had to do to frost Alonso's cookies was sit in his mirrors all afternoon, reminding him that while he may be slower, he was ahead (in the championship).
I wonder about the team aspect of all this. OK. Louie's a rookie. Some rookie. But I thought the team might have in it's collective wisdom figured a way to remind him of the big picture. It's both reassuring and disturbing to think that the red mist can affect us at any level.
Hats off to Kimi, fastest of the fast. Way to duck that anvil.
__________________
QUALIFICATIONS 1987: Davidson: "Sammy Swindell's car runs a normally aspirated stock-block engine with Pontiac heads. It was developed by John Buttera." Palmer: "Wow, yeah, he used to play the sax with Louis Prima." Davidson: "That was Sam Butera." Palmer: "Oh, yeah."
"Singlehandedly erased Schumacher from our collective consciouness"?
That's a bit too strong. I'm no great Schumacher fan, but it's impossible to forget his achievements. Hamilton's good and will likely be great, but Schumacher sits in the F1 pantheon.
Well, the Kimster was ahead but all Louie had to do to frost Alonso's cookies was sit in his mirrors all afternoon.
Yeah, funny that. Hamilton seemed to have a good head for racing, but in the last two races he showed that he lacks a killer instinct. A killer instinct, in this case, would have meant playing the odds, avoiding risk, and taking a cold pleasure in letting Kimi and Fernando get by him. He should especially have tried in China, with the thought that he then could have had as flamboyant a race as he wanted in Brazil.
Instead, he chose showmanship instead of going for the kill.
"Erased" is a strong word. Hamilton's brilliant debut certainly went a long way to filling the "star" vacuum Schumacher left behind. And in the absence of a truly dominant figure, the present competitiveness between the teams and drivers creates a lot more excitement for the fans.
Quote:
Originally Posted by wbs
Instead, he chose showmanship instead of going for the kill.
I don't think it was "showmanship" or lack of a killer instinct. When he is calm, Lewis has shown he can face down the best. I think, in his inexperience and under the greatest pressure he has ever felt, he panicked. When you're such a competitive person, it takes a really cool head to watch your rivals pass you and remember that it can still work out. Massa's great move at the start, Kimi going by him immediately and Alonso successfully claiming the good line when he had to back out of it -- in the moment, that just overwhelmed his pressure-cooked brain into making a really low percentage move to try to get it all back. I think Hobbs was dead on that the banging around from that off probably caused the electronic glitch in the gearbox that ultimately sealed his fate, given how bulletproof the McLarens have been all season.
__________________ "All things are ready if our minds be so." -- Henry V
Shuey's achievements were never in question but I didn't think about his absence all season and that was totally due to Hamilton's close battles with Kimi, Fernando and Massa... OK... The other guys had a little bit to do with it too but Hamilton commanded the spotlight like no other driver because he so exceeded expectations.
And... IMHO the only thing Hamilton lacked was the maturity to recognize and avoid the two incidents that threw away his championship season. He showed plenty of "killer instinct" on the track all year. He won't make those mistakes twice and will learn the wily ways of the seasoned veterans soon enough.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rgreist
"Single-handedly erased Schumacher from our collective consciousness"?
That's a bit too strong. I'm no great Schumacher fan, but it's impossible to forget his achievements. Hamilton's good and will likely be great, but Schumacher sits in the F1 pantheon.
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You draw 'em a picture and they eat the crayons... (Duck Waddle commenting on the creative ways some people interpret driving instruction.)
Semantic difference, I guess, but by "killer instinct," I envision something entirely different than fighting instinct, or "tiger" as Denis Jenkinson called it. I've always said that Hamilton is more of a fighter than anyone out there, and has, I believe, unparalleled traffic skills. The killer instinct is something cold and objective, rather cruel. I think he lacks it. I may be wrong and it's just inexperience, but I still feel that if he had what I'm talking about, he would have perversely enjoyed letting FA & KR pass him, watching them desperately trying to race, while he just coolly allowed his 17 point-lead crush them of its own weight.
I would compare Hamilton to Kasparov in '84-85. Kasparov came up the ranks incredibly fast, playing really extraordinarily crowd-pleasing combinative chess, until he was down 5-0 in a world championship match against Karpov, who was known as having ice-water in his veins. At that moment, though, Kasparov was able to change his style (as he desperately needed to do to survive). Hamilton had trouble doing that.
I think Hamilton got a quick education on the nuance of calculated race craft this year. It will be interesting to see how much his blood runs cooler next year. Enjoyed his youthful exuberance and relative innocence. Will be sorry to see him grow out of it as it gave charming balance and human scale to the usual ruthlessness of F1
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You draw 'em a picture and they eat the crayons... (Duck Waddle commenting on the creative ways some people interpret driving instruction.)
Could be false, but that would explain why his car worked so well after appearing to break down.
You can imagine what must have been going through Hamilton's head at this point.
The interesting thing was Ron D. (I believe it was) said a couple rounds back that he was confident Lewis could finish up with the championship because throughout his career, McLaren only sponsored him for the next step up when he won a championship, NOT when he mastered the class of car in question, or not when he proved he was the fastest driver in the series, or not any other entirely valid yardstick. So I would have thought he would have shown calculating racecraft more than he did.
That being said, his team was utterly reckless in China, beaching it in the pit lane might seem like horrible race luck, but McLaren's letting him stay out for the two laps before that on those front tires was a disaster waiting to happen. THEY, at least, have lots of F1 experience, and it's just amazing that they let him push the envelope that far when he had a double digit point lead.
Oh well, I guess that's why they say that experience is something you get right after the time when it would have been useful.
The FIA have confirmed receiving a formal appeal from McLaren that could see Lewis Hamilton handed the Formula One world championship. Motor sport's governing body issued a statement on their official website acknowledging Hamilton's team have disputed the decision of the stewards not to penalise rival teams BMW and Williams for fuel irregularities at the Brazilian Grand Prix. The statement read: "The FIA has been informed by the Secretariat of the International Court of Appeal that they have received a Notification of Appeal from the UK National Sporting Authority on behalf of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. "The Vodafone McLaren Mercedes appeal is against the decision of the Stewards of the 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix, made at 21.35 hrs on October 21st 2007 (document number 41), that it was inappropriate to impose a penalty on cars 9, 10, 16 and 17."
If the appeal if successful, those teams could be disqualified from the race which could also mean Hamilton being elevated from seventh to fourth position.
If he is also awarded the points for a fourth-placed finish, the 22-year-old Briton would replace Kimi Raikkonen as drivers' champion.
However, such an outcome is by no means certain, even if the FIA decide to overturn the stewards' decision.
There are a range of punishments available, one of which could see Williams and BMW lose the points gained from Sunday's race but without Hamilton enjoying any benefit. Hamilton endured a disastrous race at Interlagos, where gearbox problems ultimately saw him finish a point behind race winner Raikkonen in the overall standings.
It prevented the Briton becoming the first rookie champion in the sport's history.
Hamilton also finished the Brazilian Grand Prix behind the Williams of Nico Rosberg and the BMWs of Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld.
Stewards later found their cars to be in breach of technical regulations regarding fuel temperatures but decided there was "sufficient doubt" and decided not to impose a penalty.
However, McLaren are confident they have the evidence to prove the stewards missed crucial information that could change the outcome of the result.
The appeal is likely to be heard next month. Hamilton has already claimed he would not feel comfortable being handed the title in such circumstances, saying: "For me, I want to do it on the track and in style by winning the race, or after battling it out for the lead - fair and square.
"So being promoted after some people have been thrown out is not the way I want to do it. If I became world champion that way, it would feel weird.
"After Kimi did such a fantastic job, winning the last two races, to have it taken away from you, it's a bit cruel and probably not good for the sport."
Good for Lewis
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