Best performance of the late nineties excluding MS?

[santori]

Following the rivals thread - which do you consider the best non-Michael performance of the late '90's?

[santori]

On the driving itself, I mean, apart from the opposition it provided to Michael.

[Adam43]

All pretty good.

Frentzen did really well in the Jordan. Won in France (despite being the most overtaken driver!). A good win in Monza and then the peak of that deserving pole at the Nurburgring. His car let him down and that was it.

Panis did well in 1997, but his accident put paid to what could well have lead to a victory.

Villeneuve, did well in 1997 with was only his second season.

Alesi, well a win (his only!) came his way in 1995.

Damon put the Williams on the front row every race in 1996. A great performance throughout the year, give or take the odd race start!

Mika was great in 1998. Sublime at the begining when he had a car advantage, but ultimately more impressive when the Ferrari was as good. Nurburgring. the Ferrari's had the pace in qualifying and despite being held up by Irvine for a few laps (allowing Michael to build a decent lead) Mika came through to win. Great stuff. He was top at Suzuka too.

As mentioned in another thread, Mika and McLaren had the best performance to try and lose a championship. Together throwing 60 odd points away mid season!

So after all that garble to help myself decide.

Hmmm Hill or Hakkinen? I can't decide, I'll come back later!

[devil racer nz]

For me Mika Hakkinen in 98 AND 99

[Snrub]

The one that impressed/surprised me the most was HHF.

[Mal]

It has to be Hakinen. He really took the fight to MS for several years on a consistent level that no one else has really done.

[climb]

Compared to car/team situation, unquestionably Frentzen

[krt917]

Yes, and maybe Ralf in the last of the Mechachrome Williams.

Damon and Mika also stand out. Mika's 1999 wasn't great, but the poll said 1998. Ummm.....

[climb]

Damon 96 and Mika 98 had excellent cars

[krt917]

That is true, but they did pretty decent jobs with them, and Damon helped to get his to that level in the first place.

Nevertheless, I still can't decide between these two and Ralf and HHF, who both did brilliant jobs in less-than-brilliant machinery.

[O'Schumacher]

I've gone for "other"

I think Rubens Barrichello's 99 season with Stewart was superb. He led in Brazil and probably would have won in Germany (think about it-his engine blew after 4 laps when lying ahead of Frentzen, Salo & Irvine) and put in his best drive to date in Hungary, looking after his tyres and making just one stop on his way to 5th.

[Jordi]

I voted for HHF99, but I think Jacques' 2000 was pretty good as well.

[jhansen]

I voted for Mika '98. Although Hill and HHF rate right up there. JV was great in winning his title second season out, but it was not as impressive to me. He had the vastly superior car and only won the title by 3 points over MS (before MS was DQ'd obviously).

[santori]

Yes, Jacques' best was, I think, 2000. Maybe the poll should have been of the best post-Senna year, excluding Michael.
I voted for H2F, by the way.

[f1manoz]

Frentzen in 1999 is a stand-out.

[Jordi]

Heinz... when a relatively "small" driver in a "small" team could've won the title. Will that ever happen again?

[djb]

for want of making a definitive decision, what does come to mind was poor HHF banging the steering wheel when his car let him down at that later race which did his hopes in. It was great stuff in terms of "giant beating" wasn't it, and must still haunt him with "what if's"

[Skam85]

Well, as amuch as i dislike Damon Hill, I reckon as a one off race performance, his Hungary 97 job was good.

Villeneuve 97 and Panis 97 tied for me

[DNQ]

Olivier Panis in 1997 could quite easily finished in the top five in the championship, although there is a question mark if he could have maintained that incredible momentum deep into the season. In any respect, what he did taht season up until Montreal was sheer brilliance.

However, there's a question mark over that, so for me it's down to Frentzen and Hakkinen, with Frentzen edging it for me, despite being a huge Mika Hakkinen fan. As Jordi hinted, was that the last time a privateer ever/will ever challenge for the title?

[woodbine]

It has to be Mika. He was head and shoulders above his team-mate unlike Hill who took all season to beat Villeneuve. HHF had the best DRIVER'S performance but the poll title seems to be about the total package so it's Mika, a great driver in a great car

[BARrouette]

Mika and Villeneuve who gave him his first f1 win .

[RWC]

DEFINITELY hakinen.
GREAT under pressure and genuinely ,awsomely fast!
No argument that he was faster than MS though.
As damon said once while watching him and shuey at monaco(at the swimming pool complex?)...."these two are something special-they are just driving differently to everyone else"


Frenzy was good but not great at all

Alesi i would like to think so but,no....

Panis...STILL abit of an unknown quantity.It would be good to see him as a team mate to a known star

JV...good fight but most of his driving is just balls-not nessesarily pure speed..

Damon-similar to (but not as bad as!)DC,he took so loooooong to do it(and had to have the champ hobbled!) that he tends to engender resentment

[The Treester]

Mika in '98... Iceman!

[Mr V]

I'm going for HH-F in '99.

For someone who, along with Michael was suppossed to be so fast, Mika made a pig's ear of winning the WDC in 99.

Eddie Irvine is not very highly thought of on this board, and got to within 2 points of Mika, dispite playing number 2 to Michael for the first half of the season, and HH-F proberbly would have taken the fight to the last race had the Jordan not broken down whilst he was leading at Nurburgring.

[John Turner]

Yes, all good but my vote goes to HHF in 99. Agree with
Skam85 about Damon's 97 Hungary drive; probably the best one off of the period. He so deserved to win that one.