Quote:
Originally Posted by bella
- he didn't have a genuine opportunity to win the title once it became clear he'd be missing at least 2 of the 9 events for f1 obligations...
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That is a point that most people miss. It is a concern of mine that he isnt so hungry for results that he get out there and win every race he was entered in to prove he is the pick of the litter and worthy of the STR Friday testing and HRT race seat.
But, nothing is ever that easy in competitive motorsport and i think missing rounds, driving for two F1 teams in 2011....well WSR was always going to take a back seat and not be his main focus when away from the track...something no doubt it was for the others
Re his form at HRT...the car simply isnt reliable enough to tell. He has outqualified Luizzi, but with the cars being what they are you just dont know if its the driver or a small gremlin with the car. Indeed over a race distance if you pay attention to their respective lap times it seems Dan is generally on a better pace then Luizzi, but with so many cars lapping them and affecting their pace even this is difficult to confirm.
So from his year, I think all you can really take from it is he hasnt made any silly mistakes and binned or looped the HRT. His race pace is improving with experience in traffic management.
The biggest indicator for me was his Friday testing performances in the STR. For a tyre that is meant to be difficult to turn on and get endurance from, his pace over a single lap and over a long run was very good compared to the other car. So he definitely hasnt thrown away the opportunity, it seems he is doing everything expected of him...but it would be nice to see him be the first HRT driver to take it to the Virgins like he almost did in Singapore...that will start to prove his pace and race craft over Luizzi