What did this weekend say about Hamilton?

[BootsOntheSide]

Originally Posted by Patrick Fletche

In the turn one carnage Massa, Kimi and Alonso got round, Hamilton didn't. The ITV fanboy commentators did not comment on this.

Massa, Kimi and Alonso didn't have a car punted into them. Lewis was completely blameless in that incident.

[Alan Raine]

Originally Posted by Super Hans

That's a very interesting point, as I had been thinking the opposite.

With cars spearing into the gravel, I believed that it was probably safer to remain buckled in, than climb out and risk being hit whilst exiting.

A bit of both really.

If your facing the oncoming traffic you can be a bit exposed (and there's nothing worse sitting there knowing someone's about to come and hit you).

If your facing the other way - stay put.

[Mr V]

What did this weekend show us?

• * He is not the demi-god that the media and ITV have lead us to believe, i.e- he can't do miracles (as anyother driver wouldn't have been able too yesterday either)
  
  * He has a very mature head on his shoulders, who else would have left the engine running for that amount of time?
  
  * He is a fantastic overtaker, though having the fastest car out there, against slower cars helps of course
  
  * he's not likely to try dry tyres in wet conditions again
  

[Patrick Fletche]

Originally Posted by BootsOntheSide

Massa, Kimi and Alonso didn't have a car punted into them. Lewis was completely blameless in that incident.

Here is the video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuC5VSTjNC8
It shows the incident from many angles.
I did not see anyone punt into Hamilton.
He just went straight on because he had misjudged it.

[HugeF1]

Absloutely 100% agree with Mr V

Hamilton had incredible pace when he was on the right tyres, but that bad call cost him very dear. As he said himself, he learnt more from that race than his previous 9 races...

[BootsOntheSide]

Patrick, read what I said again - I was talking about the first lap incident, which caused rear suspension damage to Lewis' car, which was fixed when the red flag came out.

[Alan Raine]

Originally Posted by BootsOntheSide

Patrick, read what I said again - I was talking about the first lap incident, which caused rear suspension damage to Lewis' car, which was fixed when the red flag came out.

When he damaged the tyre in the BMW debacle?

[Patrick Fletche]

Originally Posted by BootsOntheSide

Patrick, read what I said again - I was talking about the first lap incident, which caused rear suspension damage to Lewis' car, which was fixed when the red flag came out.

And I was talking about lap 2 when Hamilton misjudged the corner and went straight on needing a crane to get him out. Whilst Massa, Alonso and Kimi got round the corner.

The difference between a rookie who is just learning and an experienced F1 driver.

[Super Hans]

Originally Posted by Patrick Fletche

And I was talking about lap 2 when Hamilton misjudged the corner and went straight on needing a crane to get him out. Whilst Massa, Alonso and Kimi got round the corner.

The difference between a rookie who is just learning and an experienced F1 driver.

Which category does Jenson Button fall into?

[Patrick Fletche]

Originally Posted by Super Hans

Which category does Jenson Button fall into?

Jenson arrived at the corner first and aquaplaned off because of the standing water.
Hamilton could see this happen right in front of him but did not slow down. The more experienced drivers believed the evidence of their own eyes and did slow down.

[MrTTraces]

Originally Posted by Patrick Fletche

Jenson arrived at the corner first and aquaplaned off because of the standing water.
Hamilton could see this happen right in front of him but did not slow down. The more experienced drivers believed the evidence of their own eyes and did slow down.

Well if thats the case then the 'experienced' JB would have believed the evidence of his eyes and seen the standing water and thus backed off.

Those were freak weather conditions and no matter how experienced you are you can still get caught out.

I thought LH did well to keep the motor running. Sadly the gamble for a couple of points didn't pay off.

[T0MAT01]

Originally Posted by Patrick Fletche

Jenson arrived at the corner first and aquaplaned off because of the standing water.
Hamilton could see this happen right in front of him but did not slow down.

You do realise it's pretty much impossible to slow a car down while aquaplaning right?

[275 GTB-4]

This weekend showed that young Lewis is a Champion

[Kirk]

I thought he handled all that came his way very well. And it came at him in droves, didn't it. I was particularly impressed with the start (once again, this time in slippery conditions) and with keeping his head about him when stuck in the gravel - more proof to me that he is wise beyond his years.
On the flip side, I hope he learned a valuable lesson on tyre choice. I suspect it was the team that made that decision but it will be interesting to hear what Lewis has to say on that subject. (If allowed to by Ronny)

[Patrick Fletche]

Originally Posted by T0MAT01

You do realise it's pretty much impossible to slow a car down while aquaplaning right?

I am not going to get into a fanboy argument here.

The simple fact is that Kim and Massa and Alonso all got round the corner.

And Hamilton didn't.

[Super Hans]

Originally Posted by Patrick Fletche

I am not going to get into a fanboy argument here.

The simple fact is that Kim and Massa and Alonso all got round the corner.

And Hamilton didn't.

You could just as easily remark that Massa, Fernando and Lewis all managed to enter the pitlane properly, and Kimi didn't.

They all make mistakes. Lewis is no different.

[Patrick Fletche]

Originally Posted by Super Hans

You could just as easily remark that Massa, Fernando and Lewis all managed to enter the pitlane properly, and Kimi didn't.

They all make mistakes. Lewis is no different.

But when the back end came out on Kimi's car on the right turn into the pits he had the car control and speed of thinking to get out of the situation without crashing. Just look at the video again, it was super skill.

When Hamilton lost it he chose to ignore what happened to Button in front of him, he didn't have the car control to get out of the situation, he came off the track and he crashed into the barrier. All of which Kimi, Alonso and Massa didn't do. These are the irrefutable facts.

I am not going to discuss this any more. I am not a fanboy for anyone and so I look at the facts.

[Alan Raine]

Originally Posted by Patrick Fletche

But when the back end came out on Kimi's car on the right turn into the pits he had the car control and speed of thinking to get out of the situation without crashing. Just look at the video again, it was super skill.

Super Cock up more like it - and yes I have watched it again.

[Peter Mallett]

From www.formula1.com

Jenson Button, Honda (DNF):
“I didn't get a good start and I dropped to 20th position, however I had a really good first lap and I was up to sixth position when I pitted for wet tyres. After that the rain poured down and Turn One was a lake. By that time I was in fourth position behind Massa and Alonso. I just touched the brakes and all four wheels locked, then I hit the wall. It's a real shame because I had a lot of fuel on board, a good strategy given the way the race then panned out for the others and I love to drive in these wet conditions. This race was unfortunately a lottery and sadly I lost out.”

And:

Lewis Hamilton, McLaren (9th):
“This was an extraordinary weekend and a new experience for me. Initially I made a good start and was sixth. I got into fourth when the two BMWs went off, and I picked up a puncture and had to pit. The team took advantage of this and fitted rain tyres, but it just got too slippery and I went off. I managed to keep the engine running, and a crane was able to get me free - thank you Nurburgring marshalls. The race was then red flagged. After the restart I pushed as much as I could to catch up, but when you are almost a lap down you really have to rely on other people’s misfortune. I was able to get ninth in the end after passing a Renault on the last lap, but no points.”

[superMINI]

I loved James Allen's superlatives predicting the man in 17th place's race to come would be 'spectacular'.

A spectacle it was not. Alonso's empirical move on Massa in the closing laps was spectacular. Hamilton playing 10th place tennis with Fisi, who repeatedly regained his place from Hamilton, was not spectacular, it was just scrabbly tail enders having their own race within a race.

Schumi or Senna would have left Fisi and the rest long behind and finished in the points. Easy.

Note how lucky Hamilton was at almost every turn this weekend. He was lucky not to be seriously hurt on Saturday (although the mood in the paddock was sombre apparently as we all waited with bated breath to find out there was nothing bloody wrong with him, yes thanks for the melodrama James Allen, but I think the mood in the Mallory Park paddock this weekend is actually what you could sincerely describe as sombre).

He was lucky to be passed to drive on the sunday, given he had spent time in the medical centre. He was lucky they managed to put his car back together. He was lucky he didn't get punted off in the BMW incident, he was lucky his car didn't hit the tyres in the aquaplane, he was lucky he didn't stall, he was lucky the crane driver was prepared to crane him while still in the car, he was lucky to be allowed to make up his lost lap... etc etc etc Compare that with the luck of another British driver, Button, went into the gravel, car damaged, had to get out, race over, end of story.

Next we'll have Lewis not just aquaplaning on water, but walking on it too.


Allen and Brundle also failed to mention Anthony Davidson, British, or David Coulthard,. British hardly at all, both of whom spent the larger part of the race higher placed than Hamilton, who pushed his way to 9th out of 13 by virtue of having a strong car, and some retirements in front of him.

Not only that but Allan's incredulity at Winklehock's position for the restart was appalling. He was there fair and square, where others had failed when the conditions tested them.


Basically a race with lots of drama, lots of strong performances, and lots of craziness, ruined again by embarrassingly biased commentary, and ridiculously high expectations based purely on a lot of hype and internal politics.

Sorry.

[Sodemo]

I think he still has a lot to learn.

When he came in after being let out from behind the safety car and was changing to slicks, I instantly knew that it was totally the wrong decision.

The track was just far too wet, and I think a lot of other people thought the same.

If you remember the Spa race a couple of years ago, people changed to slicks early then and were just totally at sea, with no grip for many laps until there was an actual fully dry line.

The fact that the team didn't intervene and veto his decision to come in for slicks also surprises me.

[Super Hans]

Originally Posted by superMINI

Schumi or Senna would have left Fisi and the rest long behind and finished in the points. Easy.

Despite Fisi having a pit stop in hand? I sincerely doubt it. He made a fantastic ballsy pass on Fisi, and had to pit soon after, meaning he had to do it all over again. Following the disasterous tyre gamble, Lewis drove extremely well.

As for Saturday's incident, it's only natural for commentators to appear concerned when a driver has a heavy impact and appears to be hurt. The tragedy at Mallory Park has absolutely nothing to do with it.

[superMINI]

Originally Posted by Super Hans

As for Saturday's incident, it's only natural for commentators to appear concerned when a driver has a heavy impact and appears to be hurt. The tragedy at Mallory Park has absolutely nothing to do with it.

My point was the relative context in which James Allen continually fails to veil his overt favouritism.

I've seen many, many races where a driver is stretchered off, and is not mentioned again until the end of the programme.

It's just over the top, and it won't be til Hamilton has a few more weekends like this - or more likely a few more weekends like Kimi or Jenson that this horrible sycophantic overkill will subside. Until then it's really spoiling my enjoyment of the grands prix. Or at least the television coverage of it.

[Mr V]

Originally Posted by Patrick Fletche

Jenson arrived at the corner first and aquaplaned off because of the standing water.
Hamilton could see this happen right in front of him but did not slow down. The more experienced drivers believed the evidence of their own eyes and did slow down.

Brazil 2003....

Juan Pablo spun off on lap 24 during the infamous "river across the track" episode.

2 laps later, Michael Schumacher did the same thing at the same place. Should we think any less of Michael for it?

[Super Hans]

Originally Posted by superMINI

My point was the relative context in which James Allen continually fails to veil his overt favouritism.

We can criticise Allen as much as we want, but ITV sign his pay-cheques, and they'll be telling him to focus on Lewis. The TV figures have gone through the roof since Hamilton-mania began, so they're hardly going to discourage it. It isn't ideal, but it is the reality of the situation.