The Motor Forum

Dr. Hfuhruhurr · Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2008 11:24 am Post subject: Drivers of the year

In alphabetical order:

Alonso
Hamilton
Kubica
Massa
Vettel

These five were head and shoulders above everyone else, IMO. Putting them in order comes down to personal preference, and - for me at least - how they performed relative to the quality of their car. So - and feel free to disagree:

1 Alonso
2 Hamilton
3 Massa
4 Vettel
5 Kubica

Duffers of the year would have to be DC and the two Finns, though at least DC has had the self awareness to realise his time is up.

Parm · Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2008 11:49 am Post subject:

Sad to see DC out on the first corner in his last race.
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BeN · Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2008 11:56 am Post subject:

1) Vettel. Simply for being the youngest winner. He's even younger than me.

2) Massa. Definitely upstaged Kimi, and shook up the order within Ferrari.

3) Kubica. Was in the mix until late in the season. Bodes well for both driver and team.

4) Alonso. Some good performances in a less than competitive car. Definitely the mark of a champion.

5) Hamilton. Grudgingly.

Interesting to note that all the drivers who started the season also ended the season with their team. No mid season driver changes. (Super Aguri excepted of course)
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TimR · Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2008 2:23 pm Post subject:

I generally agree with that top 5 apart from Kubica.

He seemed to lose the ball a bit over the last few races and yesterday he was nowhere, not all of which can be explained by his poor early tyre choice.

It was a pity to see DC out so early.

Rodge · Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2008 2:25 pm Post subject:

In order of brilliance:

1: Sebastian Loeb

2: Alonso
3: Hamilton
4: Massa
5: Kubica
6: Vettel

Best Finn this year was Mikko Hirvonen.

Or is it supposed to only include F1 drivers?
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ALF · Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2008 3:00 pm Post subject:

This is difficult - it is hard to pick without basing your choice on what you know of their talents. It's also easy to miss mistakes by those not in the top two teams. I'm going to comment on 5 but in no order:

Vettel - breakthrough season for the talented youngster, managing to find consistency and mental strength to go with his previous erratic talent. We'll be seeing more of him.

Kubica - a great performance overall, but not without mistakes - usually from qualifying onwards where he ruled himself out of the top spots of too many races through immature choices. Certainly the driver of the first half of the season.

Massa - outperformed many people's expectations, mine included, showing blinding speed when the car was good. Significantly stronger mentally as well, as yesterday showed. But let's not forget that he started the season looking like a total tool, and managed to spin 4 times in the same race, bizarrely since he looked great in the wet at Monaco. When he makes an error, he makes more, and never gets back into the fray. If this stuff is true about him not being consistent enough for his own test team to think his data is useful, he'll never develop the car to his liking without a strong team-mate with a similar enough style. That may become critical next year with the new regs.

Hamilton - showed speed in mixed and wet conditions that is the hallmark of a true great, plus from his performance relative to Heikki often seemed to be outperforming the car. But needs to realise making all the other drivers hate him is not a good plan (even MS didn't make quite all the drivers hate him) and recall the old adage about not being able to win the race in the first corner, but being able to lose it...

Alonso - started the season like a petulant teenager, doing nothing and slagging off the car, and indeed anyone else he felt like slagging off. Finished the season as the best driver out there, outperforming his car and always coming off best in tussles on the track, plus showing the canny decision making that helped him to two titles. Who knows what Renault will give him next year, but he finished this one looking like a championship contender.

Big Blue · Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2008 11:49 pm Post subject:

1. Rossi - the "winningest" ever rider in the premier bike class; never missed a GP start (that is a bit of a bike statement as injuries are more common); made Stoner look like a nob at Laguna Seca, where Stoner qualified about an hour faster, and won this year's title at a relative canter on a down-on-power Yamaha against the might of HRC (his former employer) and the gazillion-bhp-Ducati. No car racer can ever be considered a racer when compared to Valentino.

2. Alonso. An utter tool in every respect except for in a race. The only real deal out there: says what he likes; wins races; develops a car and team; understands the long term game.

3. Massa. Look at the boy on the podium yesterday and compare him with the fake-smile, po-faced miseries that normally occupy the top step. Wears his heart on his overalls; needs everything to be calm to overcome his own Latino inner-turmoil and when it's Massa time the rest can just forget it. This is what F1 drivers are supposed to be like - akin to a character from the Frankenheimer movie: someone that looks like they have an interesting personality without having to prove it by showing the cameras how they'd like to be considered. Will never win the title.

4. Hamilton. Plastic PR made man. Can drive quite well.

5. Vettel. Anyone that wins in the rain is a proper good driver. Having been at Monza this guy was SO much better than everyone else that it was a joke. Won the race with a cigar on the go. Will win a title if he gets the opportunity to drive a car that is the class of the field week in week out and the whole team is built around him and him only. Who did that Ayrton, Michael, Mika, Fernando, Lewis........?
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Eff One · Posted: Tue Nov 04, 2008 5:35 pm Post subject:

Kubica - huge talent, unswerving commitment, relentless pace, never-say-die attitude and very few mistakes over the season. If I had a team I'd want him in it.

Alonso - peerless once the car started to come good from mid-season onwards, and finished 2008 looking like the champion he is.

Massa - nobody rose higher above expectation in 2008. An instinctive, reactive driver who lacks the natural talent of the top-liners but unlike Raikkonen in particular, is squeezing every last drop of it and using every resource at his disposal. Made fewer mistakes than Hamilton over the season.

Hamilton - an outstanding talent which showed signs of brittleness under extreme pressure, and a tendency to switch his brain off at key moments. But experience will iron out the kinks and few can touch him for raw speed or car control. A thoroughly worthy champion.

Vettel - as amusing off track as he is formidable on it. Has fantastic delicacy and feel in changeable conditions, lightning single lap pace and amazing racecraft for a 21 year-old. Final laps in Brazil aside, his debut win at Monza was, for me, the finest moment of the season.
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Chris M Wants a V-10 · Posted: Tue Nov 04, 2008 10:16 pm Post subject:

Let's not forget that Massa spun out of the first 2 races whilst trying to come to terms with the loss of traction control. I was beginning to think that he just couldn't cope, but he obviously listened to someone (MS??) and became the most transformed driver of the season. He was also very gracious in defeat after the final GP, saying (as did Alonso, of all people) that Lewis was the best in 2008 and deserved to win the title.
I hope that Massa manages to win the championship at least once in his career too, as he deserves it (or will do, if he keeps up his current form).
Strange how without a competitive team-mate, Hamilton was nowhere near as consistent or balanced in his race approach as last year; I just hope that taking the title will settle him.
Next target for Lewis: Matching MS's 2002 season of finishing on the podium in every race
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Big Blue · Posted: Tue Nov 04, 2008 10:36 pm Post subject:

Dr. Hfuhruhurr · Posted: Tue Nov 04, 2008 10:53 pm Post subject:

That would be the same Rob Smedley in floods of tears on Sunday night then?