There are Hamilton Fanboys and there are F1 fans.
Discussion
I see plenty of parallels with 'Mansellmania' 23 years ago. In those days The Sun championed Mansell and the demographic at GPs changed significantly. Mansell's trials and tribulations won him as many fans as 'haters' with Senna fans generally belonging in the latter group.
At the British GP this year I'd say 60% of people wearing baseball caps had chosen Hamilton caps and Friday was even more busy than last year.
Hamilton is certainly divisive; but in general, those people who follow F1 at more than a superficial level appreciate and admire him as a driver even if they don't care for his off-track shenanigans.
At the British GP this year I'd say 60% of people wearing baseball caps had chosen Hamilton caps and Friday was even more busy than last year.
Hamilton is certainly divisive; but in general, those people who follow F1 at more than a superficial level appreciate and admire him as a driver even if they don't care for his off-track shenanigans.
Impasse said:
I do find his outpourings of "I have to thank all of my fans..." claptrap somewhat contrived. In fact, most of his actions that aren't to do with driving seem to be calculated.
why not say thank u if just 2 people turned anywhere to see me do what ever I did id say thank you
thousands of cheering people at British gp for eg
I would be very thankful
Dave Gorman did a thing on this. A lot of people on stage will come out to an audience and go "Are you having a good time" which the audience will say yes.....even though nothing has happened and they have more than likely been waiting for 30 min whilst you have a wazz and grab a beer.
Its just PR tosh.......yet he does seem very grateful for having a following and really does seem to feed off a crowd.
Its just PR tosh.......yet he does seem very grateful for having a following and really does seem to feed off a crowd.
I recall Schumacher thanking the cleaners at Maranello and people ripped him to bits for being pretentious 'cos it looked liked Sabine Thing had told him to say it.
Hamilton doesn't appear to use a PR team before he opens his mouth. Bearing in mind how analy retentive the Schumacher machine was with PR we should perhaps be celebrating Lewis' openness.
Thanking the fans, the sponsors and the team is OK in my book. Believing a driver to be some sort of saint because he's been told to remember the cleaner isn't
Hamilton doesn't appear to use a PR team before he opens his mouth. Bearing in mind how analy retentive the Schumacher machine was with PR we should perhaps be celebrating Lewis' openness.
Thanking the fans, the sponsors and the team is OK in my book. Believing a driver to be some sort of saint because he's been told to remember the cleaner isn't
EnglishTony said:
I recall Schumacher thanking the cleaners at Maranello and people ripped him to bits for being pretentious 'cos it looked liked Sabine Thing had told him to say it.
Hamilton doesn't appear to use a PR team before he opens his mouth. Bearing in mind how analy retentive the Schumacher machine was with PR we should perhaps be celebrating Lewis' openness.
Thanking the fans, the sponsors and the team is OK in my book. Believing a driver to be some sort of saint because he's been told to remember the cleaner isn't
a lot of people took against Schumaker because he was, through his actions on track, seen as unsporting. Not too many folks would disagree with this assessment. Hamilton doesn't appear to use a PR team before he opens his mouth. Bearing in mind how analy retentive the Schumacher machine was with PR we should perhaps be celebrating Lewis' openness.
Thanking the fans, the sponsors and the team is OK in my book. Believing a driver to be some sort of saint because he's been told to remember the cleaner isn't
On track Hamilton is virtually peerless.
Off track, he can leave himself open to a bit of banter for his holier than thou/blessed/ever so 'umble routine and his, frankly, spectacularly awful fashion fails.
He is a character, which is great for the sport.
His fans, sadly, are often super-defensive and unpleasant, which is a pity.
deadslow said:
a lot of people took against Schumaker because he was, through his actions on track, seen as unsporting. Not too many folks would disagree with this assessment.
On track Hamilton is virtually peerless.
Off track, he can leave himself open to a bit of banter for his holier than thou/blessed/ever so 'umble routine and his, frankly, spectacularly awful fashion fails.
He is a character, which is great for the sport.
His fans, sadly, are often super-defensive and unpleasant, which is a pity.
And that's the problem, his fans are super defensive because people judge Lewis more on his appearance than what he does on track....and even when he is peerless on track often his haters put it down to a massively superior car and not his talent, forcing them to jump to his defence....it's a no win situation, unfortunately there will always be polar opposite fans of f1 while Lewis is around. But hey we should be celebrating our differences...let's face it, without his character f1 would be pretty dull at the moment....can any of you honestly say that the rest of the drivers are that interesting....not many of them have a character away from the PR image that the team allowsOn track Hamilton is virtually peerless.
Off track, he can leave himself open to a bit of banter for his holier than thou/blessed/ever so 'umble routine and his, frankly, spectacularly awful fashion fails.
He is a character, which is great for the sport.
His fans, sadly, are often super-defensive and unpleasant, which is a pity.
deadslow said:
a lot of people took against Schumaker because he was, through his actions on track, seen as unsporting. Not too many folks would disagree with this assessment.
On track Hamilton is virtually peerless.
Off track, he can leave himself open to a bit of banter for his holier than thou/blessed/ever so 'umble routine and his, frankly, spectacularly awful fashion fails.
He is a character, which is great for the sport.
His fans, sadly, are often super-defensive and unpleasant, which is a pity.
Not being super defensive but I had to respond to that.On track Hamilton is virtually peerless.
Off track, he can leave himself open to a bit of banter for his holier than thou/blessed/ever so 'umble routine and his, frankly, spectacularly awful fashion fails.
He is a character, which is great for the sport.
His fans, sadly, are often super-defensive and unpleasant, which is a pity.
If you think he's that good why do you not like him and constantly run him down?
He is virtually peerless on the track and that's how I judge good drivers not on what they wear off the track.
37chevy said:
And that's the problem, his fans are super defensive because people judge Lewis more on his appearance than what he does on track....and even when he is peerless on track often his haters put it down to a massively superior car and not his talent, forcing them to jump to his defence....it's a no win situation, unfortunately there will always be polar opposite fans of f1 while Lewis is around. But hey we should be celebrating our differences...let's face it, without his character f1 would be pretty dull at the moment....can any of you honestly say that the rest of the drivers are that interesting....not many of them have a character away from the PR image that the team allows
I was reading the above post about characters being good for the sport and was thinking of the infamous Jackie Stewart interview with Senna where JYS basically told him exactly what he thought of his driving and Senna being completely unapologetic in his defence. It's cringeworthy and amazing TV at the same time.
I rather like the way Lewis seems genuinely pleased at his support. I mean, ever seen an F1 Driver attempt a crowd surf?
I also have heard (though I know not how true) of stories about Lewis interacting with fans behind closed doors, and being late for things because he doesn't rush them and spends a LOT of time with the kids etc I expect it is true!
I also have heard (though I know not how true) of stories about Lewis interacting with fans behind closed doors, and being late for things because he doesn't rush them and spends a LOT of time with the kids etc I expect it is true!
NM62 said:
Not being super defensive but I had to respond to that.
If you think he's that good why do you not like him and constantly run him down?
He is virtually peerless on the track and that's how I judge good drivers not on what they wear off the track.
This thread is not about Lewis, but rather the OTT reaction of some of his fans.If you think he's that good why do you not like him and constantly run him down?
He is virtually peerless on the track and that's how I judge good drivers not on what they wear off the track.
We're all allowed to support whomever we wish, and it would be a dull world indeed if everyone supported Lewis. I rate him very highly as a driver as I have stated many times, but I do not happen to 'support' him. I prefer both Alonso and Vettel of that era. Of the three, I think Alonso makes the best of a so-so car and could so easily have been 5 or 6 x WDC.
When LH supporters see a Toto conspiracy, or a Lauda conspiracy, Rosberg cheating etc etc etc, other (neutral) F1 fans just see a racing incident (and Hamilton is quite handy at the push and shove himself). This isn't being a troll, and is not 'running him down', as you put it. It is simply another person stating their genuine, but different view.
deadslow said:
NM62 said:
Not being super defensive but I had to respond to that.
If you think he's that good why do you not like him and constantly run him down?
He is virtually peerless on the track and that's how I judge good drivers not on what they wear off the track.
This thread is not about Lewis, but rather the OTT reaction of some of his fans.If you think he's that good why do you not like him and constantly run him down?
He is virtually peerless on the track and that's how I judge good drivers not on what they wear off the track.
We're all allowed to support whomever we wish, and it would be a dull world indeed if everyone supported Lewis. I rate him very highly as a driver as I have stated many times, but I do not happen to 'support' him. I prefer both Alonso and Vettel of that era. Of the three, I think Alonso makes the best of a so-so car and could so easily have been 5 or 6 x WDC.
When LH supporters see a Toto conspiracy, or a Lauda conspiracy, Rosberg cheating etc etc etc, other (neutral) F1 fans just see a racing incident (and Hamilton is quite handy at the push and shove himself). This isn't being a troll, and is not 'running him down', as you put it. It is simply another person stating their genuine, but different view.
NM62 said:
... But you constantly do it - on every thread I read you seem to have a pop making derogatory remarks - you remind me of Ash73 ( where did he go ? ) - you do come across as a bit of a troll baiting Lewis fans and it would seem I'm not alone in thinking that.
well, I think we will just have to agree to differ.deadslow said:
NM62 said:
... But you constantly do it - on every thread I read you seem to have a pop making derogatory remarks - you remind me of Ash73 ( where did he go ? ) - you do come across as a bit of a troll baiting Lewis fans and it would seem I'm not alone in thinking that.
well, I think we will just have to agree to differ.TBF you're on a british F1 forum, he's a british multiple champion, one of the biggest stars not only of F1 but of sport today, if you take the time to look at a few differing nations coverage of their stars and the discussion associated you'll find here and probably British media/fans in general to be quite reserved- s
t, I was in the grandstand at Stowe the other week, lewis got a cheer every lap but even nasty mcnasty rosberg got big applause for his pass on max too as did everyone who made one stick.Your constant criticism of lewis on here just makes me think of the self-flagellating pseudo lefties who can't allow themselves to enjoy this countries success, the ones who claim to "feel a bit sick" at sight of the flag, who think they're talking with some kind of moral and intellectual authority but don't realise how stupid and misguided they actually appear. Whether thats actually you or not I dunno (too many liberal-lites in my own circle) but thats the image that comes to mind when you start up.
I think this is more to do with social media than it is to do with any particular driver. Social media allows people (actually practically forces it) to surround themselves with others of similar views and launch mass attacks on any dissenting voices. The so called "filter bubble" effect.
rubystone said:
I see plenty of parallels with 'Mansellmania' 23 years ago. In those days The Sun championed Mansell and the demographic at GPs changed significantly. Mansell's trials and tribulations won him as many fans as 'haters' with Senna fans generally belonging in the latter group.
At the British GP this year I'd say 60% of people wearing baseball caps had chosen Hamilton caps and Friday was even more busy than last year.
Hamilton is certainly divisive; but in general, those people who follow F1 at more than a superficial level appreciate and admire him as a driver even if they don't care for his off-track shenanigans.
I was a young kid at the time and I remember saying 'why is that man so boring when he talks' At the British GP this year I'd say 60% of people wearing baseball caps had chosen Hamilton caps and Friday was even more busy than last year.
Hamilton is certainly divisive; but in general, those people who follow F1 at more than a superficial level appreciate and admire him as a driver even if they don't care for his off-track shenanigans.
Edit I was young and stupid
Edited by hora on Thursday 28th July 20:05
Gassing Station | Formula 1 | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff