Lewis Hamilton's driving

[snowy]

From that view which the stewards would have had access to I really am struggling to see how they could have imposed the same penalty on Lewis as that imposed on Sebastian. Clearly Lewis was avoiding collision, and Sebastian was doing everything he could to make one.

 

[cider_and_toast]

Yeah, you can clearly see that both cars were released at the same time however Lewis has a slower getaway leaving him to exit his box and come out alongside Vettel. Lewis sees Vettel, turns his car, runs off the blue line, while doing well to keep the car in hand as it looses a bit of back end grip. He is trying to avoid thumping in to Vettels side at this point. They both proceed down the pit lane side by side. It's at that point that Vettel then forces Hamilton back over the blue lines. Nasty bit of driving from Vettel and one that should receive some sort of sanction.

 

[Sakari]

Funny how I saw this on the race.. the cam did just show the part where Lewis cuts Seb on the entrance. Now it makes more sense and I would actually say that lewis was at least entitled to cut Seb there. On the way out now with new perspective I still think Lewis should have had given Seb room on the way out, but also think that pushing Lewis towards the pits was wrong.

 

[snowy]

I really hate having to agree with Bernie Ecclestone, it's like having to thank your dentist for pulling all your teeth out and knowing full well he only did it because he gets paid by the tooth.

"What are they talking about? Isn't this sport all about racing?" Ecclestone explained to the 'Mirror'. "I thought Lewis had a fantastic race. He drove really well and they should stop complaining and get on with the racing.

"I loved watching his performance in Sepang. I bet the fans did too. It was a whole lot of moaning about nothing," he added.

 

[Enja]

Has anyone actually considered that had there been someone in his direct path in the pit lane, Hamilton might have had the sense to slow down and yield? But he (nor I) could see anyone in danger directly in front of him, even if Vettel's 'shove' was a bit uncalled for.

The only time I could see when someone was in danger was when the cars left their pit boxes and both got a tonne of wheelspin, which happens in most occasions when someone leaves a box, it's even worse in greasy conditions. Every time I see them leave their box (in Australia, Kubica's Renault came within a few inches of his crew), I am worried about them crashing into the pit wall, it's testament to the driver's skill in F1 that they don't just prang it every race.

Lewis is a hard racer, it's what makes him special and different from the majority of F1 drivers. Provided he isn't causing 200mph accidents every race they should let him get on with it. Perhaps then drivers will be able to race in the knowledge that hard but fair is acceptable.

 

[snowy]

Martin Brundle and indeed David Coulthard are really depressing me!

Whilst Lewis is applauding the Stewards new and apparently more relaxed decision making, they are stamping their feet and demanding that the stewards need to be harder on the drivers. If they had their way there would be no overtaking and the drivers would drive around as they have for the past few decades in fear of the retribution of the race stewards.

There needs to be rules and there needs to be common sense and there needs to be the opportunity for racers to race. I know there will always be plonkers out there overreacting to the slightest incident that disadvantages their chosen one. But I really feel these two guys need to consider what they say more carefully especially in light of their tragic overreaction to events in Bahrain. They are being blown in the wind like fair weather fanboys!

 

[Enja]

DC will tow the Red Bull party line - whatever it is that disgruntles them. He's a bit of a prat really. It amuses me when he predicts a Red Bull victory and they fail miserably.

Agreed on Brundle and DC overreacting, they want racing, surely, but the slightest hint of danger and it's 'good God, that's appalling'.

Brundle was ironically correct when he said

"F1 drivers live life on the edge and under extreme pressure, they need to let off steam occasionally. Few drivers are angels, or ever have been. We could all tell some juicy stories, but what goes on the road stays on the road. Kimi is towards the extreme end and doesn't hide it, which has definitely harmed him despite the apparently widespread craving of the James Hunt era."

He might do well to remember some of his own thoughts in the wider context of racing sometimes I think, even if he doesn't agree with the 'craving of the James Hunt era'.

 

[RickD]

I think Brundle may be losing it after reading his comments on BBC. There is no way Jenson should have been punished for his Safety Car restart. He didn't brake suddenly, so those behind had plenty of time to slow down, if they didn't, then it is their fault, not his. Maybe if he had stamped on the brakes, they would have something to complain about, but the simple tuth is that he didn't..

Also, Vettel should have been the one to get a punishment from the pit lane incident, there was plenty of room for both of them down there, yet the German decided to try to cause an accident in the pits instead. I would have banned him for a race for the stupidity he clearly showed..

 

[Sakari]

Has anyone actually considered that had there been someone in his direct path in the pit lane, Hamilton might have had the sense to slow down and yield? But he (nor I) could see anyone in danger directly in front of him, even if Vettel's 'shove' was a bit uncalled for.

The only time I could see when someone was in danger was when the cars left their pit boxes and both got a tonne of wheelspin, which happens in most occasions when someone leaves a box, it's even worse in greasy conditions. Every time I see them leave their box (in Australia, Kubica's Renault came within a few inches of his crew), I am worried about them crashing into the pit wall, it's testament to the driver's skill in F1 that they don't just prang it every race.

Lewis is a hard racer, it's what makes him special and different from the majority of F1 drivers. Provided he isn't causing 200mph accidents every race they should let him get on with it. Perhaps then drivers will be able to race in the knowledge that hard but fair is acceptable.

This made me think that if all the talk about not enough passes in F1 is down to the drivers. Drivers have become too modest and polite and forgot about the racing. I think I'm turning into a Lewis Hamilton fan

 

[Muddytalker]

Martin Brundle and indeed David Coulthard are really depressing me!

Whilst Lewis is applauding the Stewards new and apparently more relaxed decision making, they are stamping their feet and demanding that the stewards need to be harder on the drivers. If they had their way there would be no overtaking and the drivers would drive around as they have for the past few decades in fear of the retribution of the race stewards.

There needs to be rules and there needs to be common sense and there needs to be the opportunity for racers to race. I know there will always be plonkers out there overreacting to the slightest incident that disadvantages their chosen one. But I really feel these two guys need to consider what they say more carefully especially in light of their tragic overreaction to events in Bahrain. They are being blown in the wind like fair weather fanboys!

To add to this, I remember Brundle giving Massa grief at Melbourne for giving someone a free invite to pass him, and then criticising Massa not much later for moving over to prevent being overtaken. You can't have it both ways...

I wonder if we're seeing a culture shift though - Maybe it's just because of the changing conditions in the early races, but I'm starting to see situations where drivers could have closed the door (and in some cases brought about an accident), but haven't. Is this a case of acknowledging that they have a part to play in 'the show', and allowing space for a competitor this time will mean it should be repaid in the future?

 

[snowy]

I wonder if we're seeing a culture shift though - Maybe it's just because of the changing conditions in the early races, but I'm starting to see situations where drivers could have closed the door (and in some cases brought about an accident), but haven't. Is this a case of acknowledging that they have a part to play in 'the show', and allowing space for a competitor this time will mean it should be repaid in the future?

That would be a massive cultural shift! But slamming the door shut hasn't been practiced by all the drivers. Drivers who are regularly lapped probably get locked into a particular mindset that gives their opponents more opportunities.

Lewis, Felipe, Nico, Jenson and even perhaps Fernando have shown in the past an inclination to give racing room. I would have listed Seb V in this class, however after the pitlane incident I'm not at all sure where he falls now. Having said that Lewis was not surprised by what Seb did and nor did he have a problem with it.

I think most drivers are aware that Mark is the least likely to avoid an accident.

 

[Enja]

I think most drivers are aware that Mark is the least likely to avoid an accident.

... And they also know which one will moan the most.

Not you, Nelson.

 

[bogaTYR]

any F1 driver who manages to drive into cars standing still in front of a red light has a problem.

its the famous red mist our lewis has from time to time. luckily it seems to be less these days but every race there are moments when you think, oh not again! some may call it hard racing, i call it a not really mature and experienced F1 driver who needs to find his way better then he has so far.

sure the guy can drive a car. not much doubt about that, but the moments of brilliance are swept away but moments of utter madness. or red mistiness. maybe its time for ferrari to paint their cars blue, or orange.

see TBY? i can express some admiration for our lewis

webber, ah, since he is chairman of F1 drivers united he does go on a bit. it helps to zap from time to time.

 

[Boyle]

I think one of the reasons that Hamilton gets some undeserved criticism is that when he first came into F1 he jumped straight into one of the top cars on the grid. Many drivers perhaps felt a little aggrieved that they had done their apprenticeships at your Minardis and Jordans and therefore have harboured ill feeling toward him. It may be subsided more as the years go on but some fans I know felt the same way towards him. In any case, I don't know what the drivers think but it's fun to speculate.

I've been a fan of Lewis since I saw him in GP2. His aggression and sheer pace is so good to watch and more often than not - whether it's for good reasons or bad - he livens up the races so much. I think Formula One would be a sadder place if he wasn't around.

 

[snowy]

It seems rather strange to me that a driver who suffers from red mist also has the highest % of classifications per race entries of any driver in the history of F1!

http://www.f1-facts.com/statistics/drivers/classified_percent

Surely all that red mist would have some effect on his ability to finish races?

 

[bogaTYR]

if you drive in front even black mist and torrential rain does not make much of a difference

its great people are a fan of our lewis. i am not. but to be honest, i am not a fan of a lot of drivers, but i have been known to be partial to adrian sutil and orange cars.

to me, him being stuck behind a car for lap after lap for large parts of a race says more then his number of overtakings or races finished. the question does come up, why can our lewis overtake slower cars but not cars that are equal, or maybe, have a non average driver.

personally, i am not too impressed when a maclaren overtakes a HRT or even a Lotus, i dont like it but hey, what can you do?

but on the other side, this season our lewis seems to have had only minor whoopsadaisies. although we did have one serious iffy quali and one serious iffy yelling at the team. but that of course is the fault of the team, and we all know F1 is not a team sport and there is a distinct division between driver and team oh wait, i could be wrong there.

ah, lets just call it personality. great to yell at the team over the radio while we all know who made the decision. dont we lewis?

 

[snowy]

Not that it will make any difference, but lets compare Lewis's "outburst" over the radio at having been put on completely the wrong strategy in Melbourne, with say... Rubens Barricello's vitriolic outburst at the end of the 2009 Spanish GP. Here we can see two drivers reacting to very much the same situation, one a young up and comming talent, paired with and up against an experienced, whiley team mate. The other, a wise, experienced, mild mannered and highly respected driver, up against the same experienced, whiley team mate, Jenson Button.

Whilst it fills column inches and makes for confrontational headlines it is not that big a deal. The fact is that not all racers are happy with the decisions a team may make and when they feel let down, they may allow themselves to vent there anguish. In the case of Rubens it prossibly cost him a drive with Mercedes... But he has taken a lot of crappooka in the past without a murmer, perhaps it was a good thing Lewis got it off his chest early...

 

[snowy]

to me, him being stuck behind a car for lap after lap for large parts of a race says more then his number of overtakings or races finished. the question does come up, why can our lewis overtake slower cars but not cars that are equal, or maybe, have a non average driver.

Lewis Hamilton overtook Rubens Barricello, Mark Webber, Robert Kubica, Adrian Sutil, Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher twice in China this weekend. Clearly all these guys were just having an off day.

 

[bogaTYR]

we have someone who fights back good for you!

of course our lewis had some good races, but so far the overall picture is full of ups and downs. i am waiting for the next one. we'll see what he comes up with next.

and yes, other drivers yell at the team too. but this is lewis hamilton. he has a whole team built around him! last time we had anything remotely like that was ferrari and der michael although i assume jean todt did have a pretty strong say in matters too. at maclaren even this does not seem the case. so there is a marked difference there. there is nothing in that team lewis does not have a say in and there is nothing that does not have his approval.

but back on topic.... his driving does seem to improve, but i am not at all sure if this is natural progress or forced by rule changes. for me the jury is still out on this one.

 

[snowy]

During one of his downs he managed these overtakes:

Australia 2010
Lap 6 - 2 Hamilton passed 1 Button for 6th
Lap 11 - 2 Hamilton passed 9 Barrichello for 7th
Lap 16 - 2 Hamilton passed 7 Massa for 6th
Lap 22 - 2 Hamilton passed 7 Massa for 5th
Lap 26 - 2 Hamilton passed 4 Rosberg for 3rd
Lap 26 - 2 Hamilton passed 6 Webber for 5th
Lap 36 - 6 Webber passed 2 Hamilton for 5th
Lap 36 - 2 Hamilton passed 6 Webber for 5th
Lap whatever - 6 Webber smashes into the back of 2 Lewis Hamilton.