Vettel the best driver in F1?
Discussion
Far, far, far too early to judge yet. Very promising start and certainly looks to have the "right stuff" but you could say that about half the grid after their first season.
I suspect that the Toto Rosso is better than we all thought it to be - certainly seems that their engine specification improved towards the end of the season!
I suspect that the Toto Rosso is better than we all thought it to be - certainly seems that their engine specification improved towards the end of the season!
kevin ritson said:
He also crashed more than DC at the start of the season...
.....but now it's the end of the season and he's being a bit quicker than he has rights to be.A young driver having a few crashes at the start of a season with no TC. I can forgive that. An experianced hand. No. But a young driver in a low "learner" team. Yeah no problem so long as he stops doing it eventually.
deevlash said:
I think he quite possibly is, you shouldnt be able to do what he has with that car, its not even optimised for the engine its running. As much as I like nick hiedfield bmw must be kicking themselves about letting seb slip away.
The engine rules so tightly constrain the sizing of the engine and its CofG position that putting one engine into another car is nowhere near as difficult as it used to be.Munter said:
kevin ritson said:
He also crashed more than DC at the start of the season...
.....but now it's the end of the season and he's being a bit quicker than he has rights to be.A young driver having a few crashes at the start of a season with no TC. I can forgive that. An experianced hand. No. But a young driver in a low "learner" team. Yeah no problem so long as he stops doing it eventually.
Simple answer - no.
The best driver in F1 is currently Alonso/Hamilton/Massa and that is purely on the evidence of them being in good cars (I know the Renault was crap earlier in the year but it got better)
Stick Vettel in a Ferrari and I think he'd do very well but at the moment we just don't know.
The best driver in F1 is currently Alonso/Hamilton/Massa and that is purely on the evidence of them being in good cars (I know the Renault was crap earlier in the year but it got better)
Stick Vettel in a Ferrari and I think he'd do very well but at the moment we just don't know.
AlexS said:
deevlash said:
I think he quite possibly is, you shouldnt be able to do what he has with that car, its not even optimised for the engine its running. As much as I like nick hiedfield bmw must be kicking themselves about letting seb slip away.
The engine rules so tightly constrain the sizing of the engine and its CofG position that putting one engine into another car is nowhere near as difficult as it used to be.Why is it when a driver starts to mature with an underdog car/team; he shows that infact the team /car are better than the team bosses had anticipated, puts in some blinding races and results, everyone then starts to respect said underdogs, gets a couple of podiums, then decides to leave for another team, albeit in Vettel's case his seniors? (sorry for the long sentence). Surely with Vettels talents (arguably he's one to watch in the future) he would at least stay with Torro Rosso as the results keep on coming? As for the best F1 driver in F1? No not yet, but he's the most impressive semi-rookie this year and certainly showed-up the more experienced in the field. It took him half the season to get there, but it goes back to my point. Why leave Torro Rosso, surely if he were to stay for '09 he would be a serious challenger to the this years top 5 drivers? It reminds me of Jenson Buttons first season with Williams. It all whent wrong at Renault and now Honda. Hopefully Vettel has more sense than being driven by money.
edar said:
Why is it when a driver starts to mature with an underdog car/team; he shows that infact the team /car are better than the team bosses had anticipated, puts in some blinding races and results, everyone then starts to respect said underdogs, gets a couple of podiums, then decides to leave for another team, albeit in Vettel's case his seniors? (sorry for the long sentence). Surely with Vettels talents (arguably he's one to watch in the future) he would at least stay with Torro Rosso as the results keep on coming? As for the best F1 driver in F1? No not yet, but he's the most impressive semi-rookie this year and certainly showed-up the more experienced in the field. It took him half the season to get there, but it goes back to my point. Why leave Torro Rosso, surely if he were to stay for '09 he would be a serious challenger to the this years top 5 drivers? It reminds me of Jenson Buttons first season with Williams. It all whent wrong at Renault and now Honda. Hopefully Vettel has more sense than being driven by money.
torro rosso dont have the funding to be guarantee the same level of performance next year, plus red bull will be quite keen to keep a hold of vettel and theres been rumours of them selling off torro rosso for ages now.He's very fast, keeps his head level, and an amazingly mature racer for his age. Those early crashes weren't his fault (although he might have survived if he was more experienced), so I wouldn't put them against him.
Having said all that, it's too early to tell yet. The real test is how he fares against Webber next year. Webber has a reputation for beating his teammates, especially rookies. If he can out-drive Webber, then he definitely deserves a top seat.
Beating a 4-times CCWS champion is no mean feat, though.
Having said all that, it's too early to tell yet. The real test is how he fares against Webber next year. Webber has a reputation for beating his teammates, especially rookies. If he can out-drive Webber, then he definitely deserves a top seat.
Beating a 4-times CCWS champion is no mean feat, though.
_Batty_ said:
overtaking Hamilton on the penultimate lap, in a Torro Rosso (even though Hamilton was Ultra conservative) and some general great drives this year, is *he* the new rain master?
can't wait for the next few seasons of F1...
as long as the FIA wind their necks in...
And Kubica passed them both on the last lap like they were standing stillcan't wait for the next few seasons of F1...
as long as the FIA wind their necks in...
. 
Its far too early to say Vettel is the best.
But you have to admit as the season progressed you started to hear Vettel's name cropping up at more and more.
He's done some stunning performances and i think his wet weather control at the weekend was exceptional.
I hope The Roro Rosso are able to be competetive next year so we can see just how good Vettel is.
Definitely one to watch...
(Deviating a touch, what do people think regarding the Red Bull teams? Toro Rosso seemed to out perform the 'main' team consistenty in the latter part of the season)
But you have to admit as the season progressed you started to hear Vettel's name cropping up at more and more.
He's done some stunning performances and i think his wet weather control at the weekend was exceptional.
I hope The Roro Rosso are able to be competetive next year so we can see just how good Vettel is.
Definitely one to watch...
(Deviating a touch, what do people think regarding the Red Bull teams? Toro Rosso seemed to out perform the 'main' team consistenty in the latter part of the season)
AlexS said:
deevlash said:
I think he quite possibly is, you shouldnt be able to do what he has with that car, its not even optimised for the engine its running. As much as I like nick hiedfield bmw must be kicking themselves about letting seb slip away.
The engine rules so tightly constrain the sizing of the engine and its CofG position that putting one engine into another car is nowhere near as difficult as it used to be.Gassing Station | General Motorsport | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff