Head To Head Nico Rosberg vs Lewis Hamilton

[Brogan]

To be honest, it doesn't matter which Mercedes driver wins the WDC.

Many people have already written it off as a non-title, due to the dominant aspect of the car.

Of course, those same people had no problem with the Brawn being so dominant it won six of the first seven races.
Or the Red Bull last season and Vettel winning nine races in a row.

 

[The Pits]

Well, why let the facts get in the way.

 

[F1Yorkshire]

So in that case Williams 92 & 96, McLaren Honda late 80's plus the Schumacher Ferrari years are also non titles too....
Thinking about it, most of the championships all the way back to Fangio's 1st are also non titles.

 

[Brogan]

Indeed.

It seems to have escaped most people that in almost every year there is a clearly dominant car.
The level of dominance is largely irrelevant - 0.5 second per lap is as good as 1.5 second per lap.

The only caveat being it would be harder to come from the back of the grid with a lower lap time advantage.
Assuming the cars qualify on pole or the front few rows though...

 

[cider_and_toast]

The points system always has rewarded consistency in the main.

Here's the 84 season result:

Lauda:                          Prost:

 

5 Wins                          7 Wins

4 Seconds                    1 Second

1 Fourth                       1 Third

                                     1 Fourth

Here's the current 2014 standings:

Hamilton:                      Rosberg:

 

9 Wins                          4 Wins

2 Seconds                    9 Seconds

2 Thirds                        1 Fourth

Forgetting double points for a moment, Rosberg needs to win at least 2 of the remaining 3 races. Double points will of course make a big difference.

In terms of consistency, Lauda and Prost finished on the podium 9 times each and at the moment both Hamilton and Rosberg have finished on the podium 13 times each.

I guess the only way to make a big difference is to increase the number of points for a win.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

I said at the beginning of the season that this would be one of the hardest fought championship battles we have seen and that the very reason for this would be because of Mercedes dominance and the high calibre of the drivers competing in it. This has proved to be every bit the case on the entire journey.

 

[teabagyokel]

It is the opposite of 2005-2008, where the racing was generally processional but there was a multiplicity of different winners, and genuine intra-team title battles (although looking at Raikkonen now, one could suggest that the McLaren of 2005 and Ferrari of 2007-08 were, in fact, dominant cars driven badly).

 

[Mezzer]

Nico's title attempt looks far more pathetic than the points standings suggest.

I'd agree that the points situation somewhat flatters, but I find it hard to accept his attempt being referred to as "pathetic". Rosberg's a fine driver, maybe one of the top of the "next best group", and he's made good use of the car he's been given. IMO Hamilton is a better driver but has been unluckier, which is why the points are as they are, but Rosberg's still had a great season by any reckoning.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

Thinking further, if Ferrari had produced a car to equal Mercedes, I think we would have seen a two horse race between Hamilton and Alonso and that the title would be decided by who is the better of Rosberg and Raikonnen.

 

[Mezzer]

Based solely on performance this year wouldn't that be Rosberg? Rosberg isn't necessarily better than Raikkonen but he can drive the Merc better than Kimi seems to be able to drive the Ferrari.

 

[The Pits]

One thing from me, this championship seems to have been shaped as much by reliability as by on track performance. The telling stat for me is that only at Monaco has Nico finished ahead of Lewis when they were both on the front row. Lewis has really laid down the marker on performance. I would not call Nico's performance "pathetic" however, based on "on-track" performance, Lewis has him beat, and for the title to be decided by reliability in Nico's favour would for me do Lewis a major dis-service.

 

[ATL11]

Chad Stewarthill

ATL11 the question is, has the pendulum swung so far in Hamilton's direction that it's about to turn and start swinging back, or does it still have plenty of travel remaining on its Hamilton-bound trajectory?

Or is the anaolgy not that of a pendulum at all but more like a tug o' war, where the momentum gained by Hamilton makes it easier and easier for him to continue gaining ground and harder and harder for Rosberg to halt the slide and turn it back in his favour?

Or is it neither of these?

Reading that, Tug of war may be a better analogy.

 

[cider_and_toast]

To be fair though, going into this season, would anyone have suggested that Rosberg was likely to be quicker than Hamilton ?? Under the right circumstances and with a following wind, Rosberg has shown, certainly in qualification that he can find a turn of speed to put one on Hamilton but in the race it has been a different story. In the early part of the season it appeared that Hamilton's head was once again going to get the better of him. It does seem though that since the "clumsy move" Hamilton has finally managed to find his happy place and has just got on with the buisness of driving bloody quickly.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

The best team normally wins the WCC but the best driver does not always win the WDC. With such dominance in Mercedes, I think the season was bound to go this way since Australia when Hamilton retired. Hamilton really could have done with some other teams in the mix, further pressurising Rosberg´s race-craft.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

In the early part of the season it appeared that Hamilton's head was once again going to get the better of him.

Really? Hamilton's early season results:

Race 1: Mechanical retirement
Race 2: 1st
Race 3: 1st
Race 4: 1st
Race 5: 1st
Race 6: 2nd

 

[cider_and_toast]

I was thinking more of some of his outbursts. Especially Monaco. You're no friend of mine etc.

 

[snowy]

You should have suggested mid season cider_and_toast
You will always be hoisted, hung, drawn and quartered if you make a temporal error when discussing Lewis Hamilton.

 

[ExtremeNinja]

I think any driver would have been livid if their team-mate and pole-sitter parked it and stopped the session on their last run. I would have lost my head at that, too. I'd have probably gone a bit further. Most of the paddock seemed to side with Lewis on that one and the insiders say that that feeling of foul play has grown rather than waned amongst those best informed.

 

[Bill Boddy]

Bill Boddy - I struggle to see how that happens without a reliability problem.

Driver error.

 

[teabagyokel]

Bill Boddy - OK. That could well happen.