The official "Lets praise Ralf" thread.

[Inigo Montoya]

Doc Aus. made a good point in another thread. I thought that Ralf's drive last Sunday was superb. Very TGF-like, but without the controversy. So, lets test Doc's theory and see if I will left alone on this thread...

[Bibendum]

It's interesting. Ralf drove unarguably well, and has won some races. But he doesn't have that...star quality? I don't know. I don't think it's just because he has been, for so long, a sub-set or appendage of his brother. I feel neither strongly positive nor strongly negative about him (whereas I feel a bit of both about his team-mate...). I wonder what it is he's missing?

But, OK, I'll praise him: He did well.

[Raoul Duke]

This thread is a great idea . Now I know some smart-a$$ is gonna make a comment about how very few people are gonna post in this thread. But hey, it's quality, NOT quantity that counts .

Can I request that we make it a rule that TGF praising is not alowed? .

[Sato san]

.well done ralf...it was a good drive , but i still think JPM is faster . Also , im glad since the season has started he has stopped all the silly talk about Montoya etc...so well done for that also.

[paulzinho]

I'll swallow my pride and admit that Ralf drove superbly. Theres no doubting that he's a good driver although he made a bit of a fool of himself over the summer.

And it keeps it interesting I suppose!!

[Raoul Duke]

That's very gracious of you Paul .

[paulzinho]

Thank you.

And I meant winter instead of summer in my previous post.

DOH!!!

[Daytona Donald]

ralf was there when it mattered at the end of the race! wonder if he'll have his usual mid to end of seasom slump!

[Inigo Montoya]

Originally posted by paulzinho

And I meant winter instead of summer in my previous post.

DOH!!!

It depends if you're in the top or bottom half of the world!

[Sato san]

Originally posted by Daytona Donald
ralf was there when it mattered at the end of the race! wonder if he'll have his usual mid to end of seasom slump!

if he's true to form then he will , if he doesnt then maybe he deserves a crack at the championship !! BUT...i still believe that with the pressure that Juan will put on him throughout the year , he will end up repeating last years end to the season.

[Raoul Duke]

I have faith in Ralf. Yes he did go through a late season slump where he did seem to be a little rattled by JPM's progress. But I don't expect it to be the same this year.

[Daytona Donald]

Originally posted by Raoul Duke
Yes he did go through a late season slump where he did seem to be a little rattled by JPM's progress.

will he cope better against jpm with more experience than he did against him when he was a rookie? and jenson the rookie for that matter

[Sato san]

good point Daytona D , as now Juan has got more experince to draw from

[Dr. Austin]

You know, i never undrstood all the annimosity towards Ralf. I've never seen the guy pull a dirty stunt, so he is waaaaay ahead of TFG in my book. Maybe the guy did some boneheaded things early in his career, but tell me who hasn't? I've seen critisism from people who think TGF's critics are jealous, but i think there just might be some of that directed at Ralf. He is a good looking kid and has a drop dead beautigul wife. He has one of the top three seats in motorsports. He is famous, rich and successful. Yeah, come to think of it, I kinda hate him.

Sunday he just stood and delivered. He really handed them a spanking. Even if TFG and Juan had stayed in the race, there is no doubt they would have had to deal with Ralf. Maybe he was a little fortutious in that the other guys tripped over each other, but you have to be smart if you are going to win this thing. He probably had the Oz thing in the back of his mind as well as what happened here last year, so his caution kept him in the game until it was time to make his move.

He could have paniced when he was on a heavy load, and the temptation to go after rubens would have only destroyed his tires. He was patient and let the race play out to his advantage. It would have been more spectacular if he had streaked off into the lead and decimated Rubins, but this way paid a nice, fat 10 points. All I can say is well done, Ralphie.

[Daytona Donald]

i don't have anything against ralf personally, he drives in a fair manner and doesn't seem to cause many ontrack skirmishes, i just think that his performance over a whole season lets him down! he doesn't seem to be that strong in the head department, and this is what has allowed to let both jpm and jenson get the better of him in the second half of their respective rookie seasons!

[Sato san]

I used to follow Ralf when he was in german F3 in 95 i think , i had nothing against him until last year or so when he just kept saying such stupid stuff to the press about Juan...it wasnt that it was against Juan that gotup my nose , it was the total rubbish he was saying.....
occanionally he backs his brother up when he's blatently in the wrong , and i dont think he helps himself by doing that , he should stay more neutral , afterall he is a proffesional racing driver who earns a fortune....but basically i have nothing against him , its just these things that turn me way from him from time to time. He is a good driver , afterall , he did win the F nippon championship in his first year.

[Mania]

Oh I definately like Ralf. He's an excellent driver and he's going to win championships for sure.

I think Ralf today is far stronger and at ease with himself and his team. Last season, he started strongly and by mid season had 3 grand prix wins to his credit - which could easily have been 4 had it not been for Ferraris email tactics at the European Grand Prix.

I think his performance fell away in the latter part of the season - he was a bit unlucky - but he was also having personal problems and wasnt concentrating on his job like he should have.

This season though - he looks far more focussed, relaxed and confident which is great to see.

Every single statement from Ralf this season has been a team statement. He has even praised his team mate on more than one occasion - although he has no need to do so.

I think last season - everyone suddenly wanted an interview with Ralf - there were all sorts of journalists asking him all sorts of questions and maybe he wasnt used to it and couldnt handle it. I also think he was mis quoted on quite a few occasions but he has adapted well to the spot light.

He has definately started this season brilliantly - winning on his own merit through speed and strategy at Sepang. Who knows how quick he would have been in the race at Australia had he not been blocked by Barrichelo.

Nevertheless - watch out for Ralf. He is a serious contender for the championship this season.

[calais]

ralf did drive well at sepang, no doubt. but the fact remains he is not in his brother's or JPM's league.
i think a lot of the animosity towards him has to do as much with his brother as it does with some of his arrogant comments ever since he entered in 97.

dr. austin, you refered to MS as TFG. was that a typing error or another meaning? i think i know what it stands for!!

[Inigo Montoya]

Originally posted by calais
ralf did drive well at sepang, no doubt. but the fact remains he is not in his brother's or JPM's league.

I dunno calais, are you sure about that? I don't think Ralf is intimidated by his brother... And he's definitely not slow... I don't want to start anything here, but I definitely think he is at least in JPM's league.

[calais]

sure inigo, ralf is quick, but if you look at where JPM is this early in his F1 career to where ralf was in his, you will see my point

[Inigo Montoya]

And you might see my point if you compare the car JPM has to the Willy that Ralf had at the beginning of his career... but lets not turn this into a ralf versus JPM thingy again...

[f1manoz]

Never thought I would write on a 'Let's Praise Ralf' thread, but credit where credit's due, Ralf drove superbly last Sunday and fully deserved to take the win.

Mistake clean and stayed clear of the controversy.

[Valve Bounce]

Originally posted by f1manoz
Never thought I would write on a 'Let's Praise Ralf' thread, but credit where credit's due, Ralf drove superbly last Sunday and fully deserved to take the win.

Mistake clean and stayed clear of the controversy.

Ralf drove fast, steady, kept out of trouble and he won. But I can't remember a single brilliant part of his drive at Sepang. In fact, I can't even remember Ralf in the race, I was so excited about MSch, Jenson and JPM. At the beginning of last year, I thought that Ralf would challenge his brother on the track, but now I have my doubts. Let's hope that Ralf will live up to our expectations and make this year even more exciting.

[Dr. Austin]

[i]Originally posted by calais

"dr. austin, you refered to MS as TFG. was that a typing error or another meaning? i think i know what it stands for!! [/B]

"

You get the prize for being the very first to notice. But you may use it as well.

Bad typing is deliberate.....but instinctual.

[Dr. Austin]

And while Bounce was excited by TGF/monty battle, I almost came unglued watching Button race with Montoya. That is the kind of quality Grand Prix auto racing you can expect to see between two Gentlemen that trust each other.

That's the beauty of motor racing. While you are doing everything you can to beat they guy, it is a deadly sport and the two of you are in this thing together. So while you are trying with everything you have to beat him, you are doing everything you can to safeguard his life as well as your own. And you have to trust that guy with your life as well. It's just such a beautiful thing to have the honor of wittnessing when it is done as well as Jenson and Juan did it Sunday. At THAT is what makes these guys so special.

HARD, BUT FAIR


It would have been criminal to have had it ruined with a cheap swerve. But those two guys are above it.

And Jenson finally had a car working well enough for us to see the man can race wheel to wheel with the best men on the planet. Well done, Jenson.