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The Frentzen Syndrome (20 posts)

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Icthyes said 2 years, 7 months ago:

In the absolute best car in the field with a team-mate who did almost zero in comparison. He should have had that title wrapped up long before he did.

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Red Andy said 2 years, 7 months ago:

The other issue of Villeneuve’s championship is that at least three of his seven wins that year were inherited due to somebody else breaking down (Hakkinen at Silverstone, Hill in Hungary, Hakkinen and Coulthard at the Nurburgring). He would also have had a much bigger fight for two others as well (Argentina and Austria) had Panis and Trulli, respectively, not retired.

It’s said that Frank Williams and Patrick Head were less than delighted with the way that the title was dragged out to the very last race, given that the Williams should have been a good enough car to have dominated as in 1996.

Nonetheless, given the way the championship ended, I’m sure we were all mightily relieved when Villeneuve came through to win it rather than Schumacher.

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Maciek said 2 years, 7 months ago:

@Icthyes “In the absolute best car in the field with a team-mate who did almost zero in comparison” well, that’s what this thread is about, no? To get back to the point of my original question, is it Frentzen who did zero at Williams (but had it in him to do better), or was Frentzen’s best far outclassed by Villeneuve’s best?

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Icthyes said 2 years, 7 months ago:

Given that the Williams was the class of the field it’s pretty clear Frentzen succumbed to his own syndrome rather than Villeneuve being that brilliant. Like Hamilton, he may have deserved the championship more in his first year than his second. I was just saying why many didn’t think 1997 was that great a triumph for Jacques.

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Scribe said 2 years, 7 months ago:

I think it’s possible both Hamilton and Villeneuve suffered from second season syndrome in their title years. It tends to manifest in class drivers who become a little bit faster and a hell of a lot less consistant in their second years.

See Michael Schumacher.

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