F1

The unluckiest, least remembered and most underrated Ferrari F1 drivers

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  • #133022
    Fred Pink
    Participant

    I was interested to get some opinions on what you think are the unluckiest, least remembered (considering they drove for a premier team) and most underrated drivers to have raced for Scuderia Ferrari. I am a pretty casual fan so feel free to enlighten me with more expert opinions.

    Least remembered:
    Ivan Capelli, could also be in unluckiest list
    Arturo Merzario
    Jonathan Williams

    Unluckiest:
    Stefan Johansson
    Chris Amon
    Didier Pironi

    Underrated:
    Tony Brooks
    Patrick Tambay
    Mike Parkes

    Also is Luca Badoer the consensus opinion as worst driver to ever race for Ferrari in F1?

    #232075
    Kingshark
    Participant

    Least remembered:
    Ivan Capelli
    Stefan Johansson

    Unluckiest:
    Chris Amon
    Felipe Massa
    Jean Alesi

    Underrated:
    Tony Brooks
    Didier Pironi
    Eddie Irvine

    #232076
    Yaya Ishaq
    Participant

    Surely Jean Alesi must qualify for being the unluckiest and being underrated? I’ve lost count how many times the guy would deliver superb performances (sometimes in terrible machinery) in races only for his car to snap while leading or in a decent grid postion. I mean, he retired from the lead at Spa 91, Monza 94 and 95, Monaco 95 and 96. There are probably more as well…

    #232077
    R.J. O’Connell
    Participant

    Luca Badoer should be at the top of the unlucky list.

    Almost given the dream drive with Ferrari ten years earlier in ’99 when he wasn’t completely race rusted (like he was in ’09), but finished out the season with Minardi anyway and almost bagged a 4th at the Nurburgring. It was difficult to not only watch him struggle to be competitive for Ferrari in a race scenario, but to have so many fans and pundits kick him while he was down wasn’t enjoyable in the least.

    Alesi was also unlucky from the moment he joined Ferrari over Williams.

    #232078
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Good thread. Eddie Irvine is fascinating haha. Not just his personality, but how he got to Ferrari in the first place? I would like to know that. And how close he came to being champion. And then how he just kind of quietly went away before his time maybe?

    #232079
    Roald
    Participant

    I’d say Villeneuve and Bandini were two of the unluckier drivers to race in a Formula 1 car built by Ferrari. Especially because they both died in one.

    #232080
    Todfod
    Participant

    Unluckiest – Alesi, Villenueve and Massa

    Underrated – Alesi, Pironi and Irvine

    Least remembered (or at least not remembered enough) – Badoer, Raikkonnen, Alesi

    #232081
    Nick
    Participant

    I’d say a lot of pre-70s Ferrari drivers are forgotten these days. Along with Johansson (before I started watching old BBC coverage on YouTube, I too kept forgetting he drove for Ferrari, or McLaren for that matter.) Phil Hill even won a WDC and isn’t mentioned that often when people are talking about Ferrari.

    Wolfgang von Trips is another good candidate for unluckiest driver for Ferrari, crashing fatally in the race you need a 3rd to secure a WDC isn’t very lucky in my books. Jacky Ickx also suffered some terrible luck with Ferrari. Clay Regazzoni, Michele Alboreto, and some others probably expected more from their time at Ferrari, especially Jean Alesi, who I personally consider one of the biggest wasted talents of the 90s.

    As for Luca Badoer, I still feel bad for the guy. The man basically drove his butt off to help Schumacher be as successful as he was, but instead of people praising him for his work as a test driver, they bash him for being unsuccessful in a car that Raikkonen only managed one win in, was hard to handle and when Fisichella took over from him, he barely did any better, despite scoring a pole in Spa. He deserved a shot in 1999, he would have scored points for sure.

    #232082
    tmekt
    Participant

    @npf1

    Fisichella’s pole in 2009 (Belgian GP) was with Force India not Ferrari as you seemed to imply

    #232083
    Nick
    Participant

    @tmekt, that’s what I forgot to type, thanks. He managed pole and p2 in a Force India, but the rest of the season, he too didn’t manage a proper result in the F 60.

    #232084
    matt90
    Participant

    I’ve read that Jacky Ickx was a great driver who could have been a worthy world champion, but it just never came together for him. Was Massa unlucky? A little, but, 2009 crash aside, only in 2008.

    #232085
    Fred Pink
    Participant

    @matt90
    Was Jacky Ickx particularly unlucky? He had his best years at Ferrari and then sort of slid off the radar but I feel his intense program of sports car racing maybe split his talents?

    I admit I had completely forgotten about Fisichella!

    #232086
    DC
    Participant

    In terms of championship, Ickx, Villeneuve, Pironi , Alboreto, Barichello, Massa.

    #232087
    Journeyer
    Participant

    Unluckiest: Chris Amon (Without a shadow of a doubt.)
    Least remembered: Gianni Morbidelli (Yes, he drove for Ferrari. Look it up.)
    Underrated: Tony Brooks (I think most people agree on this – certainly in this thread.)

    #232088
    Fred Pink
    Participant

    @Journeyer
    Morbidelli is a good one!

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