Comments on: F1 links: Hamilton on Senna and Schumacher

By: PJA

PJA — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 11:03:25 +0000

After Max won the no confidence vote last it shows that for whatever reasons he has enough support in the FIA to do whatever he wants. Personally I never believed him when he said he wouldn’t stand for election again and if/when he finally does step down I wouldn’t be surprised if he used his influence to make sure his preferred candidate was his successor.

By: DGR-F1

DGR-F1 — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 09:00:59 +0000

Alianora – do we have proof that Max cares about any other motorsport apart from F1? He must be a pretty smooth talker to convice the national bodies he is supporting them since he has only ever been to one WRC rally, and as far as I can tell he has never visited WTCC or DTM events, not even A1GP or the dreaded Superleague Formula.
If he really has shown more than verbal support, then I will believe he deserves another term at the FIA, but until there is proof I shall continue to doubt his sincerity.
Oh, and maybe next year he will ask for a permenant Presidency of the FIA? Don’t say I didn’t warn you….

By: Alianora La Canta

Alianora La Canta — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 22:29:36 +0000

Max promised last term would be his last term in office as well…

The national bodies support Max because their main concern is the events in their borders. Most of them don’t have a Grand Prix at this time, so a different event is “blue riband” for them. Many of the “blue riband” events are ones that you and I have probably never heard of, but their national sporting authorities think they’re critical because they make them look good and help their country’s sporting capabilities through competition.

If Max nurtures enough of these seemingly minor events, then he has all the backing he needs. Political principles such as allying with strength rather than weakness accounts for the rest.

It could well be that the majority of the World Council are brilliant at their jobs. However, that very skill and the nature of those jobs leaves them open to manipulation by one ambitious psuedopolitician (and Max is not the first).

By: Chaz

Chaz — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 17:29:12 +0000

Good luck Lewis. I hope you achieve your goal.

I suspect Max will remain on a little longer…

By: Paul Sainsbury

Paul Sainsbury — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 16:14:35 +0000

Well, one way or the other, it looks like a very exciting start to the season. If Lewis is somewhere midfield or near the back, expect some serious entertainment!

By: Loki

Loki — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:56:16 +0000

But he was still 3rd in the overall championship (despite Fernando having over twice as many points). Given the circumstances, I’d say that’s damned good!

And Fernando himself gave us something to watch in the last few races of last year – the car had been improved and it wasn’t an amazing car, but it showed us how much the Alonso factor was worth. I believe McLaren will have caught up easily by the same time, if not before (and I mean Australia), Renault did last season.

By: Paul Sainsbury

Paul Sainsbury — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 11:48:33 +0000

If previous experience is anything to go by, he should be astonishing in an inferior car. But we can’t expect miracles. Even MS couldn’t compensate for uncompetitive tyres in 2005, and as a result he was mostly nowhere.

By: pSynrg

pSynrg — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 11:37:34 +0000

Rob, out of interest would you draw a comparison to an another legendary driver in a slow(er) car?

By: rob

rob — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 09:23:27 +0000

Perhaps its because he now knows that he is fighting for 10th and no longer 1st

Lets see how legendary he is in a slower car.

By: Owen

Owen — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 03:12:13 +0000

Interesting article about Lewis. In anticipation of next week I’ve just watched last season’s dvd and one thing that comes across about Lewis in interviews is his defensive body language and how he seems to try and convince people he deserves to be there because he is quick rather than this silly ‘silver spoon’ title he gets.

This article may be the first signs of him growing up a little and being a bit more comfortable in his surroundings (although it was in the mirror so it could all be BS). What gets so annoying about the petty criticisms he gets over every word he’s quoted as saying is that he gets no slack even though he’s just a rookie that’s been thrust into the international spotlight.

Maybe this will lead to a more relaxed attitude on track, especially at the first corners!