top 10 Drivers this season?

[BootsOntheSide]

Which drivers have impressed you all the msot this season? Here are mine:

1 Michael
2 Button
3 Rubens
4 Montoya
5 Fisichella
6 Ralf
7 Heidfeld
8 Villeneuve
9 Kimi
10 Massa

[jiggly_puff]

1. michael
2. ralf
3. jenson
4. heidfeld
5. massa
6. montoya
7. kimi
8. webber
9. rubens
10. fisichella

[Lee Janotta]

Reubens
Ralph
Kimi
Villeneuve, just going by his Austria performance
Webber, remembering Melbourne

[mac]

WEBBER - he's been outstanding all year, at every track. Still doesn't get the credit he deserves.
BARRICHELLO - right on Schumacher all year.
R. SCHUMACHER - I didn't expect him to be the dominant guy in the Willy garage.
BUTTON - I gave him a bit of stick last year, but he has done ok this year.
RAIKKONEN - Has had DC covered at nearly all of the races.
TRULLI - Despite what you Poms think, he's been every bit as impressive as Button, when his car actually goes.
FISICHELLA - So much better than the Jordan.
M. SCHUMACHER - Aside from Austria, thoroughly dominant. But what else did you expect?

[Andrew2001]

Imm, tough call.

Barrichello
Raikkonen
R.Schumacher
Button
Webber
M.Schumacher
Heidfeld


And that's my pick in that order. MS has driven beautifully, but 3 other drivers could do just as good a job in that car, Montoya, Hakkinen, Villeneuve.

RB is driving superb this year, the gap in qualifying is not half a second, but it is 1 tenth of a second. Full credit to him.

[Raven]

Probably better saved for a few weeks until it is actually mid-season. Ahh, but I didn't have much to do this evening, so here's a rather in-depth look at my choices & opinions...


1. Michael Schumacher
Best driver in the best car, nothing more to be said really. 6 races gone, 5 races won, already home and dry in the championship (not touching wood ).

2. Giancarlo Fisichella
Still as underrated as ever, Fisi continues to make the best of the bad situation with Jordan. Consistently the fastest Honda runner and lone points scoring saviour.

3. Kimi Raikkonen
Driving what is probably McLaren's worst package in six years, Raikkonen has out qualified DC 4 times in the first 6 races. At just 22, I believe, given the right equipment, that the 'iceman' could become the next dominant force in F1.

4. Juan Pablo Montoya
JPM has come a long way in the space of 12 months. Having finished just 1 out of his first 6 races in 2001, Juan is now Mr. Consistency, finishing all 6 in the points so far in 2002 including 4 podiums, a 4th and a 5th, along with a brilliant pole lap in Brazil, he currently lies 2nd in the drivers championship.

5. Ralf Schumacher
Answering his critics, Ralf has come back from a poor finish to 2001 with a strong start to 2002. Winning the Malaysian GP after the MS/JPM coming together, RS has shown consistent speed and maturity so far.

6. Nick Heidfeld
Deserves to be top 6, I would in fact like to place him higher. NH has consistently outpaced his much hyped team mate Felipe Massa, I feel success at the top is right around the corner.

7. Rubens Barrichello
After a sluggish start, RB has been right on the pace with MS in these last 3 races. ...The moral winner of the Austrian Grand Prix.

8. David Coulthard
I feel DC is either letting his head drop, or we really have seen the best of him. At 31 it's now or never IMO. Unfortunately DC doesn't have the car this year, but he does have a team mate, and despite lying 5th in the drivers championship, Raikkonen has so far put Coulthard in the shade.

9. Mika Salo
3 top 10 grid placing and 2 points on the board for Toyota, who would've guessed!? Salo was one of the most underrated drivers of the 90s. Now pretty much in the highlight of his career, it's good to see Mika getting the opportunity to work with a major manufacturer and laying the groundwork for what could come become a very strong team over the next few years.

10. Mark Webber
Rookie of the year 2002. It already seems ages ago since MW took that sensational 5th place at his home GP on his debut for Minardi. Webber consistently qualifies well and keeps up a good race pace.


Other notables:

Jenson Button
As much as I like to root against him, Button is a new man this year and driving better than ever. Although I've never rated Trulli as highly as others in terms of a benchmark, it doesn't take a scientist to see that JB is impressing a lot of people in the Renault.

Heinz Harald Frentzen
Putting Arrows first point on the board in Spain, HHF is doing a sound job so far this season.

Enrique Bernoldi
After copping a lot of undue flack in 2001, Bernoldi is proving to be a strong performer in 2002 by keeping the highly rated and experienced HHF on his toes.

Felipe Massa
Not quite living up to the pre-season hype, Massa has however put 3 points on the board along with 2 top 10 qualifying performances in the Sauber.

[f1manoz]

1.Montoya - In a car no where near as good as the Ferrari, he has finished in the points every race and now lies second in the championship. Answering his critics well.

2.Webber - Points finish on his debut and has earned plaudits all the way down the pitlane for his driving.

3.Button - After a disastrous 2001, he has come back with a vengeance this year. I'm still no fan, but I respect a job well done.

4.Ralf Schumacher - Doing a sterling job alongside team-mate Montoyta.

5.TGF - Best driver in the best car. Did you NOT expect him to win everything?

6.Rubens - Been quick from the get-go but terribly unlucky. Let's hope he can keep it up his great pace throughout the season

7.Nick - If I was completely biased, he'd be number 1! But he's outdriven over-hyped Massa all season.

8.Kimi - Bad luck through reliability but when given the chance has proved just how quick he is.

9.Fisichella - Making the best of a bad situation.

10.Salo - Doing an outstanding job for Toyota with some great qualifying results and already 2 points in the bad. Well done.

[freeze]

1- Rubens - He's stupid but I have to say he's been very fast and impress me with some great drives.
2- Ralf - I for one, tought Juan Pablo would eat him alive. Not the case!
3- Kimi - Although McLaren is not what it's use to be as far as results are concerned, within the team he's crushing DC so baddly that I wonder for his future in F1.
4- HHF - A team with practicly no testing, underfunding. What's to say - I'm happy for him.
5- Jarno - Mister Bad Luck (Should give us a strong showing at Monaco)
6- Villeneuve - Give a good car... He's still a racer!!!
7- JPM - Still has to learn hoe to better set up his car.
8- Nick - Hope he'll finally get the seat at McLaren next year. Constant & quick if not flamboyant.
9- Salo - Some surprising results so far.
10 - Button - But still rough on the edge when racing wheel to wheel.

The full "cabagge soup" soup pot to Schum sr. Hope he retires. The sooner the better for F1.

[freud]

1. Juan Pablo Montoya


2. Kimi Raikonnen


3. Jenson Button & Jacques Villeneuve

[freud]

Among the backmarkers, I was impressed by one guy:

Mark Webber

[f1manoz]

Put Webber in a Renault now!!!

[freud]

Put Webber in a Williams... he'll do a better job than Ralf.

[paulzinho]

Rubens - Shown incredible maturity this season and is getting quicker every race.

Jenson - Has been fantastic, what a turn around from last season

Michael - Has been fast but has Austria cost him more than any world title could give him?

Montoya - Fast and consistent, hope to see more duels as the season progresses

Kimi - Outqualifying more experienced team mate, unreliable car has let him down

Heidfeld - Still fast

Villeneuve - like a man reborn in Austria, more please!!!

[DNQ]

Only Nick Heidfeld and Michael Schumacher, in my opinion have put every step right...althought, in the case of Michael, scrub him...Austria was a disgrace. That leave's Heidfeld as Number 1!

[f1manoz]

DNQ, you are now my new best friend

[Dino IV]

Of the usual suspects Michael is doing alright, DC is doing alright, Heidfeld is doing alright etc. etc. No surprises there.

Who have really upped there game, most notably in the last couple of races when the cars have had there first updates after overseas problems are Giancarlo Fisichella, Jacques Villeneuve who both drove fantasticly in Austria, for Giancarlo to end in a points finish ahead of a Mac, for Jacques not rewarded unfortunately.

Also notable is Rubens performance who obviously has gained most in the change to the F2002. The car apparently has other handling\balance characteristics which suit Rubens well. Given his different driving style it was waiting for him to get a car which didn't favoured Michael's as it did before and he's really giving Michael a run for his money now.

Really bursting onto the scene now is Kimi although McLaren both in performance as reliabilty have degraded to third-best. He's doing an outstanding job and because DC obviously has shown to be on top of his game for a couple of years now it really is not enough to keep Kimi at bay. Given some personal as car development Kimi could be really step up to the front of F1. Remarkable performance so far.

Likewise Rubens resurrection because of more suitable equipment, also Button has gained from that and upped his game. He's more on the pace now and obviously Renault is taking a different approach to car development than Jordan who trusted themselves mostly on Trulli (which is why Frentzen got into a war of words and eventually out of the team). Now Trulli is without a doubt a unique driver with the most amazing natural talent on the grid today, as a development driver he's of hardly any use. He's the type of guy who can take a car, any car, on and drive it around amazingly fast. But given some time and development he would lose out to the ones who are doing the job carwise more thoroughly. So as Renault is Button giving some opportunity to get a bit of his solutions worked out he's giving Trulli a run for his money. I am wondering how long that will last as Trulli is too much to handle really. He reminds me of an event young Michael Andretti described when he was teammate to Ayrton back in 1993. He came into the pits during a GP (I believe it was during practice of Donington) and started telling about how vibrations and handling really made the car undrivable. Senna took that car to check out the problems, drove a extremly fast lap and got back to the pits. Andretti wanted to know how he managed to get the car around so quickly and what his sense of the problems where. No notable vibrations or handling problems Senna replied and Andretti couldn't understand how he got that speed out of that car. Trulli has that same capability of rising above things that are performance limitations to other drivers. Teams are easily lured into self-confidence or neglecting areas which should be developed so for Button I hope Renault works a bit Williams-style, very analytical, so he, and in the end also Trulli, can benefit from that.

Like Kimi also Massa and Sato should be noted. Altough Sato makes a messier apperance and is at times too eager and overdoing things, they both are rightfully in F1 as there capabilities with todays car are outstanding. They are very fast especially if you consider them driving against teammates which are really top of the bill themselves. Because these guys are so young it's also noteworthy what a friendly approach both Heidfeld as Fisichella have towards them. Still hoping for Pizzonia and Alonso to join the grid ofcourse, but given the current performance of 'old foxes' like Irvine, DC, Panis I hope we get to see them next year.

[alesi95]

1. M SCHUMACHER
2. R BARRICHELLO
3. J MONTOYA
4. R SCHUMACHER
5. J BUTTON
6. N HEIDFELD
7. M SALO
8. K RAIKKONEN
9. F MASSA
10.D COULTHARD

Perhaps Fisichella instead of Massa but there is nothing impressive about his season because Jordan haven't given him the opportunity to be impressive.

Perhaps if the title of this thread was top ten drivers "if they were given equal machinery then Fisy would be well up there.

[Mania]

The Drivers who have impressed me this season:

1. Ralf Schumacher.

Ralf has been super fast throughout the season and has hit back in the best possible way at the so-called "experts" who were doing their best to write him during the winter. A grand prix win already this season - and with a lot more to come before the season ends. Ralf has been the man of the season for me.

2. Rubens Barrichelo.

Like him or not - Rubens has been impressive. Giving Schumacher a run for his money is no easy task - but Rubens has done a great job and has been both fast and consistent.

3. Jenson Button.

Nice work Jense! He's been very very good this season - a season which is a make or break for JB. If he continues to impress, he has a great shot to reclaim his seat alongside Ralf next season or for that matter hang on to the Renault drive.

4. Kimi Raikonnen.

Raikonnen has rattled DC's cage - he's been quicker that DC more often than not and has just been very unlucky with reliability. Kimi will definately win races if Mclaren can give him the car.

Here are the least-impressive drivers this season:

1. Juan Montoya -

Hasnt impressed me this season at all. He's been too impulsive and I dont see any real difference in pace between him and anyone else on the grid. He's good, but not super-fast like his die-hard supporters are claiming him to be. Put Massa in the Williams in place of Montoya and he'll probably do as good if not a better job then Monty. Nevertheless, he's a good driver and makes a good team with Ralf for BMW Williams - but he's just not as good as the publicity machine wants him to be.

2. David Coulthard

Beaten in pace by Kimi. DC's future hangs in the balance. He doesent deserve a spot with a top team anymore - he's had the spotlight on him for too long. Its time for Mika to come back or Heidfeld to take the 2nd seat.

3. Takuma Sato

Another rookie who may have made the step up to F1 quicker than he should have. I understand driving a Jordan isent easy but still - Sato seems too crash-happy and he needs to grow out of it sooner rather than later.

4. Alex Young .

Three words - Gaston Mazzacane's cousin ?

[f1manoz]

Gee Mania, that was real surprising!

Ralf most impressive and 'Man of the Season'

I think NOT!

[Mania]

Originally posted by f1manoz
Gee Mania, that was real surprising

Nope. Pure facts.

[f1manoz]

Fair enough, doesn't really concern me as I don't particularly cheer for either.

[Mr V]

juan pablo montoya the driver who has taken the challenge to tgf, and will finish ahead of his more experienced team-mate this season.

jenson button bounced back after a bad season last year, taken the fight to jarno...and winning! desperatly unlucky not to have that podium in Maylasia

kimi raikonnen the man who will lead to DC's sacking at the end of the year.

rubens barrichello a man reborn after getting his hands on the F2002, although not as fast, he has given tgf something to think about.

michael schumacher has the best car, and (supposedly) the best driver, he should be winning everything shouldn't he.

takuma sato although he's been slated for his race performances (and rightly so on occasion) his car control is second to none, just wish he wouldn't put himself in the position of showing us his control in the first place.

mark webber deserved the points in Australia, but does Young flatter him?

heinz-harold frentzen deserves to be in the seat instead of verstappen imo, much faster than bernoldi, who was in turn, faster than jos last year, good call tom.

[Damon]

Mania, please that post is embarracing!! Ralf top driver, JPM one of the least impressive. Its a contradiction in terms. If JPM has managed to get to P2 in the championship while being unimpressive what the hell is Ralf playing at!

[Mania]

Originally posted by Mania




Hasnt impressed me this season at all. He's been too impulsive and I dont see any real difference in pace between him and anyone else on the grid. He's good, but not super-fast like his die-hard supporters are claiming him to be. Put Massa in the Williams in place of Montoya and he'll probably do as good if not a better job then Monty. Nevertheless, he's a good driver and makes a good team with Ralf for BMW Williams - but he's just not as good as the publicity machine wants him to be.

Sounds pretty straight forward to me Damon. Like I said above - he's a good driver but after all the winter talk and build up by his fans - he hasnt really demolished Ralf now has he?

As for points - congrats on the 4 point difference. Get ready to see it disappear on Sunday.

[Speedworx]

1 Raikkonen
2 Button
3 Massa
4 Webber
5 Sato
6 Heidfeld
7 Yoong
8 McNish
9 Barrichello
10 Bernoldi