Hamilton's driving

[PlatinumZealot]

I think Hamilton is in a higher league of overtaking than anybody else in the history of F1 in both quantity and quality. Some* of his views may be similar to Senna's but his style is not really comparable IMO.

As per his current driving.. He is in a calm place now, he has nothing to lose. What you see now is the old Hamilton but a bit wiser to the tyres - Blindingly fast, aggressive, instinctive, unforgiving and yes still making a mistake here or there, but that's what happen when you are on the limit.

I notice that in the recent races he is using a new, strange type of tyre strategy these days; he uses the tyres hard out of the box in order to pull himself forward to create an bigger opening/margin for future strategies. Then on that new strategy, in the next stint (usually the last stint) he drives on the tyres in a more normal way. He did this in Valencia and Silverstone.

The disadvantage is that he burns through the tyres a bit faster in the middle stints, and sometimes it can back-fire if the stint is too long. Just my observation.

[PlatinumZealot]

I hope this thread is not locked just because it is a Hamilton thread. The discussion is civil so far.

[Pierce89]

Hamilton and Alonso are head and shoulders above the field in pure talent. Neither The mp426 or the f150 is truly a match for the RB7(but obviously closer than they were) but this is rules package IMHO is letting a driver show more.(The tires might not last but they're good enough to outqualify the double diffuser cars of last year)

[ringo]

Alonso the best. Hamilton the fastest.

Why?
Best in what ways related to on track performance?

I think Alonso is the second fastest and most consistent. Whether it makes him the best i don't know.
Hasn't really had a barn stormer in a couple years.

Alosno is similar to vettel, just with more skills. He doesn't really overtake for wins, but he is capable. He piles on pressure though and pushes at the limit 90% of the race. I think that's what stands out.
Whether his past years and his recent, less classic, successes keeps him as the best is debatable.

[Robert.Gardner]

I think its funny how people are so sure in their own ratings of both cars and drivers, with no scientific reasoning behind them. Drivers have strengths & weaknesses, so do the cars. Tracks are quite different, and differ under climatic condditions and level of grip.

I have questioned Hamiltons overtaking occasionally in the past, regarding how safe/clean they were, but considering the alternative (of him, or anyone else being, faster than the guy in front, but coming home mid-field or lower, as they couldn't find a place to overtake without any risk), I would much rather he continue as he has been.


A real racer!

[mx_tifoso]

In all honesty as long as this is considered useful and mature by us, the moderators, it will remain open. Keep the fanboy drivel/comparisons out.

I hope that it is clear enough for everyone to understand and act accordingly.

[HampusA]

Alonso the best. Hamilton the fastest.

Why?
Best in what ways related to on track performance?

I think Alonso is the second fastest and most consistent. Whether it makes him the best i don't know.
Hasn't really had a barn stormer in a couple years.

Alosno is similar to vettel, just with more skills. He doesn't really overtake for wins, but he is capable. He piles on pressure though and pushes at the limit 90% of the race. I think that's what stands out.
Whether his past years and his recent, less classic, successes keeps him as the best is debatable.

I don´t know, it just feels like that to me from watching F1 for a while.

Hamilton and Alonso are actually pretty similar drivers.
We know they are pretty much neck and neck in the same machinery.
Sure you could argue that Ham was a rookie that year but still, he got a good solid car for his first year and him and Alonso were probably cool with each other in the beginning.

I would really not draw any comparisons to Vettel. Vettel is a hotlap king, that´s what he do.

Alonso and Hamilton are fighters. Hamilton is the overtake king. If you can´t overtake he will create the chance.
But Alonso is the race king for and ultimately overall the best driver imo.
He just takes it easy when others don´t.
He doesn´t try stupid moves (which i don´t blame Hamilton for at all)
He has more experience then Hamilton and Alonso is in his prime as we speak.

He almost clinched the WC title in a year RBR should have dominated, snatching wins and points while everyone else had wreckfests etc.

I don´t know, for me Hamilton has some way to go before he trumps Alonso in being "the best"
But for speed? Hamilton no doubt, he will only get faster and imo would give Senna a run for his money.

Best way to put all this to explain: Alonso has the least amount of weaknesses.
As a matter of fact, i can´t even think of one..

[donskar]

Hamilton's spped is unquestioned. But as Hungary showed, he still lacks the maturity and stability that Button displays. Hamilton should look at Button and learn. I don't think he is mature enough to do so.

[N12ck]

could these comments above be moved to the hungarian gp thread, as it isnt really related, especially Giblets above, off topic

[internetf1fan]

The team made a mistake, but so did Hamilton many times in the race.

The one major mistake was the spin, and that was a direct result of putting Hamilton on the SS, and making him do 10+ qualifying laps just to get that 19 seconds to cover for the extra pit stop. Up to then, Hamilton had everything covered perfectly fine. The call on inters was bad as well, but that's not an issue, even without that call Hamilton had already lost his race win due to him being put with SS.

[marcush.]

Hamilton has definitely a different level of risk acceptance than Button and in unpredictable conditions he will inevitably pay a price for it.
Interestingly Alonso is quite similar but not as extreme these days.

[Just_a_fan]

Any chance we can have an apostrophe in the thread title please? Between the n and the s of the first word would do the job nicely.

Thanks.

[SiLo]

It was a shame to see him spin when obviously trying to fight so hard for the win after another questionable strategy call by Mclaren, reminded me of Hockenheim in a way.

Recently he has been at another level though and I think Vettel should be slightly worried, especially if Mclaren really get their act together and start taking more wins away from them.

[Just_a_fan]

In the opening laps Hamilton was head and shoulders above the others. Once the line dried Button was able to match him as was Vettel but before that he was almost untouchable. He made Vettel look like he was driving on slicks at times.

Had the tyre strategy worked for him then he'd have walked the win with ease - his spin was as a result of trying to protect an overheating front tyre (as he explained post-race). The irony was that he outraced Button to get track position for the change to inters just as the choice was becoming doubtful.

It was good to see the two McLaren drivers racing hard yet again. Of course, they'll never get a driver's title that way but never mind, it's good for the race fans amongst us.

[horse]

I think Hamilton is unsurpassed in true wet conditions, perhaps Schumacher was as good in his prime. Possibly Button is better on a drying track, he does seem to find a turn of extra speed earlier than the other guys.

It was good to see the two McLaren drivers racing hard yet again. Of course, they'll never get a driver's title that way but never mind, it's good for the race fans amongst us.

Couldn't agree more with the racing sentiment, however I think McLaren are more keen on a constructors than a drivers championship and you need two competitive drivers to secure one of those.