Jacques Villeneuve vs Lewis Hamilton
Discussion
Looks pretty equal as far as performances in their rookie years are concerned.
JV and LH both scored 4 wins in year 1.
Both were fighting for the title which was decided in the final race (JV suffering a mechanical retirement - same as Lewis).
JV won the F1 drivers title in his second year.
Go Lewis!
JV and LH both scored 4 wins in year 1.
Both were fighting for the title which was decided in the final race (JV suffering a mechanical retirement - same as Lewis).
JV won the F1 drivers title in his second year.
Go Lewis!
This is a good post.
JV drove very very well in his rookie F1 year, even getting pole in his first race (which he also would have won had it not been for a problem with his car).
Now, I'm not going to bash Hamilton as everyone will be feeling a bit raw just now, but ITV only mentioned JV twice in comparison to Hamilton all season (James Allan in a couple of throwaway comments).
Hamilton drove an excellent first season (I have my own views on his attitude and demeanour), but to say it was incomparable was wrong.
Saying that, BBC's news last night led with a piece on "Hamilton not winning tha championship", and it was only towards the very end of the piece that they even mentioned Kimi's name!
JV drove very very well in his rookie F1 year, even getting pole in his first race (which he also would have won had it not been for a problem with his car).
Now, I'm not going to bash Hamilton as everyone will be feeling a bit raw just now, but ITV only mentioned JV twice in comparison to Hamilton all season (James Allan in a couple of throwaway comments).
Hamilton drove an excellent first season (I have my own views on his attitude and demeanour), but to say it was incomparable was wrong.
Saying that, BBC's news last night led with a piece on "Hamilton not winning tha championship", and it was only towards the very end of the piece that they even mentioned Kimi's name!
kevin ritson said:
JV spent two (very good) years in a professional formula, ie: one that wasn't full of up-and-comers and subject to a high turnover of drivers. Also he was 3 years older than Hamilton at the time of his debut.
Both started very well, Lewis is still by far the most impressive.
QuiteBoth started very well, Lewis is still by far the most impressive.
nrayner said:
I've got a horrible feeling that Hammy will have a poorer season next year as he'll be going into it with a huge weight of expectation rather that as a shiny new boy with nothing to lose.
Plus he will be down at the arse end of the pitlane. - not a serious point but* No-one who has ever won Formula 2/Formula 3000/Gp2 has ever won the F1 Championship.
motormania said:
JV eveytime.
He was a maverick and F1 is missing that these days, though I'm sure there will be a few lap-dancing clubs keeping an eye out for Kimi's celebration party
Alonso? he's pretty entertaining, never know which one your going to hear from.He was a maverick and F1 is missing that these days, though I'm sure there will be a few lap-dancing clubs keeping an eye out for Kimi's celebration party
What are the chances Hamilton can go another season with no breakdowns?
Obvious difference is that JV spent a couple of years in CART first, big powerful open wheel cars and probably more importantly, high media profile. On the other side of that, Hamilton had been around GP for longer racing on many of the same circuits etc
Also JV came in at a time when Schumacher was brand new to Ferrari and the team was not yet competitive. No one else had a car that could hold a candle to the Williams. Hamilton has had 2 Ferrari's and a very competitive team mate in Kimi Raikonnen.
Let's see if Lewis can seal the championship in his second year as per Villeneuve (and the McLarens were more of a threat in 97) and if he can avoid bleaching his hair and turning into a waster there after!
Also JV came in at a time when Schumacher was brand new to Ferrari and the team was not yet competitive. No one else had a car that could hold a candle to the Williams. Hamilton has had 2 Ferrari's and a very competitive team mate in Kimi Raikonnen.
Let's see if Lewis can seal the championship in his second year as per Villeneuve (and the McLarens were more of a threat in 97) and if he can avoid bleaching his hair and turning into a waster there after!
In 96 Williams was undoubtedly the best car on the grid and the only half serious challenger was Schumacher in the Ferrari, his teammate (Irvine) was nowhere so Villeneuve hardly had the same level of competition in his rookie year as Hamilton has had. Its also worth bearing in mind that although the championship was relatively close, Damon won 8 races to Villeneueve's 4 and had 8 poles to 3 in his favour, so although Villeneueve was still in contention (just) going into the last race, it wasn't nearly as close as Hamilton / Alonso have been.
The 2007 Mclaren has been the most reliable and on some circuits the quickest, but Id argue that overall the Ferrari has been slightly the quicker tool this season, if nothing else the Mclaren's equal. Also although I rate Damon, I don't think too many people would put him in Alonso's league of ability.
I like Jaques as a driver and he certainly drove very well in his rookie year, but I don't think direct comparisons can be drawn with what Hamilton has achieved.
The 2007 Mclaren has been the most reliable and on some circuits the quickest, but Id argue that overall the Ferrari has been slightly the quicker tool this season, if nothing else the Mclaren's equal. Also although I rate Damon, I don't think too many people would put him in Alonso's league of ability.
I like Jaques as a driver and he certainly drove very well in his rookie year, but I don't think direct comparisons can be drawn with what Hamilton has achieved.
coetzeeh said:
Both were fighting for the title which was decided in the final race (JV suffering a mechanical retirement - same as Lewis)
Hate to be picky but Hamilton didnt suffer a mechanical failure, he went straight on instead of turning left whilst trying to overtake Alonso, then had a mysterious electrical glitch very similar to turning on the pit speed limiter 
As for Villenuve, it's just a pity that he ended up at BAR.....now if he could have been team mates with Schumacher at Ferrari
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