Is F1 better if you're not invested in a particular driver?

[bobbo89]

Don't massively support any particular driver however last year I did find myself leaning towards wanting Rosberg to win the title.

I've always quite liked Raikkonen too and now the Ferrari looks goods I suppose I'll be cheering him more than in previous years.

And like others have said, I quite like to see an underdog do well and I think Grosjean is hugely underrated so I always like to see him do well.

[JonChalk]

bobbo89 said:

Don't massively support any particular driver however last year I did find myself leaning towards wanting Rosberg to win the title.

I've always quite liked Raikkonen too and now the Ferrari looks goods I suppose I'll be cheering him more than in previous years.

And like others have said, I quite like to see an underdog do well and I think Grosjean is hugely underrated so I always like to see him do well.

Have to admit to admiring Raikkonen (I even have a "Leave me alone. I know what I'm doing" mug at work. Sad :-) ), and one reason being that he is the complete opposite of Hamilton & couldn't give a toss what I, you or anyone else thinks of him, or whether we're supporting him or not.

[Derek Smith]

I've supported teams rather than drivers after Clark's death. I started with Lotus, moved onto Brabham and then, at the start of MP4, went with McLaren.

I got double the number of drivers to support and very infrequently get stuck with the OP's problem. Although, at the moment, I'm struggling. McL no longer excites. I've always liked Williams but they seem happy to be in the midfield. Force India is enticing. Merc is too good so, despite owning a Merc, I've decided to ignore them. RB - nah. Ferrari - I've got some taste.

For the Oz GP I had no team and no particular driver. I was glad to see Ferrari not only competitive but winning. Or rather, a team other than Merc winning for a change.

However, I've found supporting a team much better than drivers. There are ups and downs in all teams. It's more like following a rugby/football club. You appreciate the players but they come and go.

I enjoy exciting drivers even when they are not in 'my' team.

I just like F1.

[bobbo89]

JonChalk said:

Have to admit to admiring Raikkonen (I even have a "Leave me alone. I know what I'm doing" mug at work. Sad :-) ), and one reason being that he is the complete opposite of Hamilton & couldn't give a toss what I, you or anyone else thinks of him, or whether we're supporting him or not.

Spot on, he's got that 'couldn't give a fk' attitude that I like in people

[GAjon]

If you go to your local circuit to watch club racing, you rarely know anything about the drivers/owners/teams, you just go to watch cars race and hopefully see some good racing.

Obviously F1 is much higher profile and it's difficult not to know or even avoid all such information , but I still try to adopt the I'm just watching cars racing and hoping to see a good scrap on track.

[CraigyMc]

aeropilot said:

Huh....?

The pitlanes team of choice for those unaffiliated. Also most people's "wish they would win" team when their favourites are out.

[Vocal Minority]

JonChalk said:

Bradgate said:

.......... same way I support Leicester Tigers or..........

Oooohhhh......swing and a miss ;-)


(from a Glos fan :-) )

eeewwwwwwww......

I have to say I always supported JB after Damon Hill - not sure why, seems a likable bloke I suppose.

Now he's gone, I have adopted a very cynical attitude of anyone but Mercedes.

I tend not to cheer for Hamilton either (despite acknowledging his status as the best out there)- its not even his fault, he's done nothing wrong - its his small hardcore of fans that treat being a fan of a racing driver like an exercise in religious zealotry. They really get my goat!

[Poisson96]

Don't really like Hamilton, apart from that I'm pretty OK, with more liking for Vettel and Bottas as slight preferences but like the rest as well

[thegreenhell]

I've never been a particular driver fan, although D. Hill and J. Button both endeared themselves by being that likeable British underdog character who beat the odds to win through perseverance. I don't feel any affinity towards any of the current lot.

[parabolica]

HustleRussell said:

I struggle to dislike any of the drivers, I have no cause to really.

I like some more than others but I could say something positive about each one.

This is a good thing IMO, or at least I'm happy about it.

Same here; you just have to remember to check the 'ignore thread' button on the race thread no later than Sunday evening when all the fan bois come out and start armchair arguing about how their favourite driver was badly mistreated in the race.

[swisstoni]

I have no idea what any driver is really like. Most seem quite nice chaps, considering the scrutiny and pressure they are under.
I have normally just supported British teams.
But I find myself defending certain drivers because of the devoted haters they seem to attract.
So I love to see that driver win just to hack the cretins off.

Edited by swisstoni on Wednesday 29th March 21:20

[JonChalk]

WitnessProtection said:

Personal view is that singular support potentially clouds your enjoyment by making a fantastic drive by a driver you don't support feel like a negative. If you're channeling your enjoyment of the sport through a singular lens, you're going to miss out on a lot of other stuff IMO.

Good point. Hoping that this turns out to be the case.

[coppice]

In forty odd years I've had a few drivers I admired (for lots of reasons, not just speed) eg Lauda. Peterson . Rosberg K, Hill D, Alesi Sato and Button - but all I have ever wanted is a good race , and I don't care at all who it's between . I remember seeing the early Mansell fans (Union Jack draped , effing and blinding at Senna every lap ) and despairing . I hate partisan sports and tribalism and neither should have any place at motor sport events - it's a lot better for it . Oddly enough the worst place I have seen it is BTCC - which attracts its own crowd demographic some of whom who behave like Poundshop nascar fans and I suspect have no interest in any other form of the sport.

[coppice]

It's what you care about though isn't it ? A diehard Bottas (other drivers are available) fan would presumably be happier with a pole. victory and fastest lap full house by VB than a great race won by Mr B's worst enemy. I watch , and value , pure racing , more than any individual driver . And if we get a wild card winner- a Brambilla in Austria, a Panis or Beltoise at Monaco, a Gethin at Monza or , yes, a Maldonado in Spain I am delighted .

[coppice]

If you think it's boring because you don't have anybody to support then ..dunno..try another sport ?

[Ahonen]

I was a huge Hakkinen fan and could never stand Schumacher or Ferrari, so when Mika retired and MSC began his period of domination I just sort of stopped watching it religiously and wasn't really bothered. It was odd, having been glued to the TV coverage since being allowed to stay up late to watch Jones vs Piquet in '80 or '81 when I was around 8, that I suddenly wasn't that bothered anymore because I didn't have anyone to support and I suddenly noticed that the races were quite dull on the whole.

Weirdly it was at about the time when I hadn't watched a single GP for about two years (apart from the Canadian race in '11, which is one of my all time favourite races) that I was offered a job in it.

It does make a difference if you have someone to support, otherwise you're just a mildly interested observer. There are some sports that I enjoy watching out of interest, like biathlon, without being that bothered who wins, but when we were sitting on the edge of our seats in my mate's living room at about 4:30am in October '98 as Hakkinen and Schumacher duked it out for the title in Suzuka it was a whole different world of nervous excitement.

[coppice]

Despite never having been strongly partisan , my interest has certainly never, ever been 'mild 'in the 40 odd years since I watched my first Grand Prix. I get that some people love to have someone to shout for - but it certainly isn't compulsory.. I guess my favourites in any race are the guys catching the ones in front of them.

[GAjon]

You really don't have to look like this to enjoy or be interested in any racing!

Although I admire their enthusiasm.

[Likes Fast Cars]

I'm also a big JB fan so it's been hard to see him retire.

But I love DR so that softens the blow, I would love to see him win the WDC (although I fking hate that Helmut Marko ahole, and Horner can be a prize prat at times).

I was cold on Ferrari during the Todt / Schumacher era, but these days and with Kimi there I don't mind seeing the odd Fezza win.

Hamilton is by far IMO the best driver on the grid but for some reason I've gone off him in recent years, maybe it's the Merc dominance and bore-fest, hard to say what it is really.

Perez has the occasion blinder of a drive and I like FI (old Jordan team).

I did enjoy seeing Vettel take the win down under but gutted for DR.

Let's see how the season pans out but right now it's interesting and I suppose if i had to nominate a favourite driver it's DR but as I said above Red Bull.... Marko ()

Summary: sometimes the driver you really like drives for a team who are run by "a pack of aholes" (as "Gentleman" Jim Richards once called the Bathurst crowd many years ago).

[JonChalk]

Ahonen said:

..... (apart from the Canadian race in '11, which is one of my all time favourite races) ........

Me too!

Ahonen said:

There are some sports that I enjoy watching out of interest, like biathlon.....

Me too!

...we'll see how we go this weekend, hopefully, China will be more of a "race" & there will be action, if not I can watch Indycar and MotoGP.