Pierre Gasly/the pope at Renault?

[chunterer]

Originally Posted by peebee2

Millions poured into you. Given multiple year and chances to hit targets. Gifted a top level F1 chance where otherwise wouldn't have happened (esp JEV). Shafted. Not.

If they were "more than deserving" of a non-Red Bull F1 drive then they would have got one. Neither did. Or was ever really that close to being picked up.

I accept your point about careers being paid for which maybe a priviledge but how do you know neither were of interest to other teams?!

The opposite was in fact the case certainly re JEV but financial and (yet more) politics came unto play which scuppered them. It's also pretty evident that those 2 were a damn site better than 50% of the grid at the time and yet those 50% only outlasted them.

If we go back to Bella's point about pre F1 'dumpees' then who do we specifically single out as debatable cases?

Wickens, Da Costa (although he's still on the firm by default in DTM), Maki, Hartley (still inconsistent in WEC).

Then what about those guys who got a token season for whatever reason like Stoneman who had a rotten time in 3.5 but had been pretty stellar in anything he had (and has since) sat his backside in?

It seems that even RB have accepted that old cliche that a superstar only comes along once in a generation