DCs last race.....thought?
Discussion
At the end of his long and sometimes glittering career, how do you view DCs performance in F1?
I thought all was going well up until the end of '97 when Mika was gifted the win at Jerez, then Mika seemed to gain the upper hand. From then on Mika appeared to blow him away. Obviously when Kimi turned up and single lap qually happened, this signalled the end of his McLaren career.
I like the guy, he's got a great sense of humour and he's done well, but I can't help feeling he didn't 'quite' achieve all he should have.
Thoughts?
I thought all was going well up until the end of '97 when Mika was gifted the win at Jerez, then Mika seemed to gain the upper hand. From then on Mika appeared to blow him away. Obviously when Kimi turned up and single lap qually happened, this signalled the end of his McLaren career.
I like the guy, he's got a great sense of humour and he's done well, but I can't help feeling he didn't 'quite' achieve all he should have.
Thoughts?
I must admit that i was never, and haven’t ever really been a fan of DC’s. It all stems back to the childish views I held of him in his early Williams years where I was a 100% Hill fan and saw DC as a distraction as he was another one who could take points away from ‘my man’.
Then off he went to MacMerc where I would have liked to have seen him shine but again was in the position to take points away from Hakkenen(sp?) who I felt deserved the title more than he.
So from a personal point of view I was never 100% behind him, unless it was in the interests of ‘my man’. Professionally I thought that DC was, except on the very odd occasion, the perfect professional. Never causing anymore grief off track, conducting himself very well in all situations, and letting his racing do the talking. My perception is though that he always seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Whenever it was possible it could be his ‘year’ he just didn’t seem on it enough, yet when it was his team mates ‘year’ he seemed to shine and look like he was being fettered.
In the last few seasons I have seen another side to him and will never forget him saying something along the lines of ‘This is great, I get to race F1 cars and now I can say anything I like other than Red Bull tastes like rats piss’.
All in all, partisan interests aside I see his career as one which deserved a few more victories but I will never feel that he should have won the WDC, good, but not that good.
Then off he went to MacMerc where I would have liked to have seen him shine but again was in the position to take points away from Hakkenen(sp?) who I felt deserved the title more than he.
So from a personal point of view I was never 100% behind him, unless it was in the interests of ‘my man’. Professionally I thought that DC was, except on the very odd occasion, the perfect professional. Never causing anymore grief off track, conducting himself very well in all situations, and letting his racing do the talking. My perception is though that he always seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Whenever it was possible it could be his ‘year’ he just didn’t seem on it enough, yet when it was his team mates ‘year’ he seemed to shine and look like he was being fettered.
In the last few seasons I have seen another side to him and will never forget him saying something along the lines of ‘This is great, I get to race F1 cars and now I can say anything I like other than Red Bull tastes like rats piss’.
All in all, partisan interests aside I see his career as one which deserved a few more victories but I will never feel that he should have won the WDC, good, but not that good.
I recall him weeping in the pitlane on JYS's shoulder at Thruxton when he lost the F3 title to Rubins - admitedly the car let him down in the end. You can see that episode as either his passion for the sport or as a fundementally weak side to his charecter unbefitting a WDC candidate.
I can say that I have always approved of his taste in women though & wish him all the best with that.
I can say that I have always approved of his taste in women though & wish him all the best with that.
VladD said:
It'd be interesting to know what percentage of GP drivers ever get to be WDC.
According to Wiki,There has been 799 different drivers. (65 of those never qualified so didn't start a race).
The drivers championship has run for 58 seasons, and 29 different drivers became the WDC.
Therefore the percentages suggest, if you become an F1 driver, you have a 3.6% chance of becoming the champion.!!
Don said:
rude-boy-quoting-DC said:
‘This is great, I get to race F1 cars and now I can say anything I like other than Red Bull tastes like rats piss’.
He's good for a laugh is DC. F1 will miss him. I doubt he'll miss F1 though...Edited by Flying Toilet on Tuesday 21st October 14:03
Always had a lot of time for DC, a charecter who will be missed down the pitlane, Who is JB gonna park his camper van next to?
I always felt that he should have won more, but has won enough.
Will always remember after the race he was done for speeding in the pitlane, saying live on air that next time he will treat the pit limiter button like his girlfriends nipples.
I always felt that he should have won more, but has won enough.
Will always remember after the race he was done for speeding in the pitlane, saying live on air that next time he will treat the pit limiter button like his girlfriends nipples.
I like DC but I feel he's achieved as much as his talent and temperament deserve.
He was gifted the Williams drive due to Senna's crash and, I felt, didn't really make the most of the opportunity. One has to take into account the fact that he was taking the seat of arguably the most talented driver of his era who had just been killed, but I still feel he could have seized the opportunity a bit more. My lasting memory of his Williams days was him crashing in the pitlane at one race (Australia?)
He went on to McLaren obviously and achieved a modicum of success but I never got the impression he'd fight for the title, he'd only pick up wins on those circuits that he was faster than Mika or those races he'd inherit.
Deserved race winner? Absolutely.
Deserved WDC? No.
He was gifted the Williams drive due to Senna's crash and, I felt, didn't really make the most of the opportunity. One has to take into account the fact that he was taking the seat of arguably the most talented driver of his era who had just been killed, but I still feel he could have seized the opportunity a bit more. My lasting memory of his Williams days was him crashing in the pitlane at one race (Australia?)
He went on to McLaren obviously and achieved a modicum of success but I never got the impression he'd fight for the title, he'd only pick up wins on those circuits that he was faster than Mika or those races he'd inherit.
Deserved race winner? Absolutely.
Deserved WDC? No.
Muzzer said:
Deserved race winner? Absolutely.
Deserved WDC? No.
I think thats about right.Deserved WDC? No.
He did win 13 races,a nd then stopped. (Unlucky 13???). Maybe he would have achieved more is Schumacher wasnt around at the same time- in the late 90s/early 2000s there will be a lot of drivers who were very good but never had the wins they deserve because aschumacher was so dominant. And if he didnt win, Hakkinen more then likely won.
Muzzer said:
I like DC but I feel he's achieved as much as his talent and temperament deserve.
He was gifted the Williams drive due to Senna's crash and, I felt, didn't really make the most of the opportunity. One has to take into account the fact that he was taking the seat of arguably the most talented driver of his era who had just been killed, but I still feel he could have seized the opportunity a bit more. My lasting memory of his Williams days was him crashing in the pitlane at one race (Australia?)
He went on to McLaren obviously and achieved a modicum of success but I never got the impression he'd fight for the title, he'd only pick up wins on those circuits that he was faster than Mika or those races he'd inherit.
Deserved race winner? Absolutely.
Deserved WDC? No.
I'd have to agree. DC's been a lot more than a Journeyman (I'd class Rubens, Heidfeld and unfortunately Button in that catagory), but never a genuine WDC candidate. He's definitely had the car to do it on more than one occasion, but has always seemed to be slightly outperformed by a more illustrious teammate.He was gifted the Williams drive due to Senna's crash and, I felt, didn't really make the most of the opportunity. One has to take into account the fact that he was taking the seat of arguably the most talented driver of his era who had just been killed, but I still feel he could have seized the opportunity a bit more. My lasting memory of his Williams days was him crashing in the pitlane at one race (Australia?)
He went on to McLaren obviously and achieved a modicum of success but I never got the impression he'd fight for the title, he'd only pick up wins on those circuits that he was faster than Mika or those races he'd inherit.
Deserved race winner? Absolutely.
Deserved WDC? No.
I do think it is time to retire as he doesn't quite seem to have the hunger any more that's needed for F1. imo he worked hard enough at McLaren to deserve a WDC but joys of been at McLaren imo that Mika would take it. but then I'm don't think anyone is annoyed that he didn't get one.
he has won a good amount of racing and has taken a lot and given a lot to F1. I think red bull was the perfect way for DC to finish off his career as it gave him the freedom to relax and actually have a personality which he wasn't allowed at McLaren.
I will not miss him per-se as I think its time for him to go but am certainly looking forward to his commentary next season. (would love to know how much the BBC will be paying him!)
he has won a good amount of racing and has taken a lot and given a lot to F1. I think red bull was the perfect way for DC to finish off his career as it gave him the freedom to relax and actually have a personality which he wasn't allowed at McLaren.
I will not miss him per-se as I think its time for him to go but am certainly looking forward to his commentary next season. (would love to know how much the BBC will be paying him!)
toomuchbeer said:
VladD said:
It'd be interesting to know what percentage of GP drivers ever get to be WDC.
According to Wiki,There has been 799 different drivers. (65 of those never qualified so didn't start a race).
The drivers championship has run for 58 seasons, and 29 different drivers became the WDC.
Therefore the percentages suggest, if you become an F1 driver, you have a 3.6% chance of becoming the champion.!!
Soovy said:
Well he owns a hotel and has more snatch than he could ever batter in ten lifetimes, so I'm struggling to garner any sympathy for him.
+ 1Though i might have put it slightly differently. That said, i can't wait to see the back of him, let Mr No2 step aside for some new talent.
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