Nico Rosberg [Archive] - Motorsport Forums

N4D13

25th March 2012, 18:39

He's been extremely consistent and he's looked more than capable of driving really fast for five years. I wouldn't slam him after two bad races in 2012.

Car characteristics must not be to his liking, though - he's been getting the better of Schumacher for two seasons, but so far, he's been behind him in the last two races, which might mean that this year's car isn't as well suited to him as it is to Schumi's driving. But I'm sure that Rosberg will manage to raise his level somehow and start pulling off better results.

George6890

25th March 2012, 18:51

I'm sure he's pretty decent, and am absolutely not bashing him when he's 'down'. Ross Brawn and friends wouldn't have hired him if they didn't have faith and nor would he have outpaced Ol' Man Schumacher for the last two seasons.

What is concerning, though is that Schumacher appears to be on top of the MGP W03 and Rosberg is making mistakes (esp in qualifying or whilst being attacked by a quicker car). I would have imagined that with age on his side and the confidence of having beaten Schumacher since 2010, that he would be light years ahead. If anything, too, he's consistent, but I have yet to see any 'spectacular' drives/overtakes by him since 2006.

Sorry, I'm not going out of my way to wind anybody up, just discussing :)

ioan

25th March 2012, 19:07

The name alone does not make a champion.

BDunnell

25th March 2012, 19:09

The name alone does not make a champion.

No-one has ever suggested that it does.

EuroTroll

25th March 2012, 19:10

The name alone does not make a champion.

I think there's far more to Nico than just his surname. He is a very talented driver. A very talented driver who's going through a bad patch in a car that (apart from that clever duct thingy which is only good for qualy) is a bit of a pig.

steveaki13

25th March 2012, 19:58

I like Nico, he seems like a nice guy and is clearly a very good driver, and can score podiums and regular points. But as said above has he yet been in a car which can actually challenge for wins.

That said in the races he has Qualified up front, he can sometimes look a bit too error prone.

I will be interested to see how he goes this season, if Mercedes can deal with their race pace issues.

tfp

25th March 2012, 20:12

Must say I'm a bit dissapointed with him so far this season, but the season is young, he has time to turn it around yet.

A FONDO

25th March 2012, 21:37

Rosberg will never be a remarkable driver because he doesnt have any aggression inside him. He is usually overtaken easily without resistance by slower drivers/cars and very easily surrenders hunting others in front. He may cruise on the race and inherit others mistakes, but nothing more.

rjbetty

25th March 2012, 22:43

I'm sad to say he ain't looking to great now. Finishing almost 30sec down on Schu? Say what? Which driver was bumped down to the back early on? Exactly.
That does not smack of being on the same level as Vettel...

He's still better than Massa though. :p

markabilly

25th March 2012, 23:53

nik

26th March 2012, 00:47

Who?

I never seem to notice him in races. Steady, boring, never overtakes. His days should be numbered.

BDunnell

26th March 2012, 00:54

Who?

I never seem to notice him in races. Steady, boring, never overtakes. His days should be numbered.

The race of Rosberg's I most remember is his very first in F1, Bahrain in 2006. He genuinely impressed me that day. Since then, he's never quite delivered on that promise. A shame.

i_max2k2

26th March 2012, 00:59

As i have said before, F1 has come down to a guy having a certain level of talent. After that, it is more about the car set up, engine torque curves, et al, matching the exact best driving characteristics of the driver.

When they match, the car and the driver are ubeatable, even compared to a teamate. When not, the game is totally different

teamate comparisions are not that meaningful anymore.

Years ago, it was the opposite.

I think I totally agree with this, when drivers say they feel a car well, that statement means a lot, button said before the race why he was slower then Hamilton in qualy, and that he knew exactly which corner and what he was doing wrong, but he couldn't improve. Michael has driven a lot of wet races so well (Canada most recently), but he was having hard time trying to go up, just like Button (a known good quantity in changing conditions), Hamilton who was also not able to do much, he was slower then both Perez and Alonso, Vettel who couldn't do much from where he was. I guess it boils down to the car setup and how much confidence does a driver have in his car. In Spain 96, Schumacher was said to be 5secs a lap faster then everyone else, or Donnigton, I think in those times Drivers talent meant much more, like in First Free practice almost all of last year, schumacher was always faster then Rosberg, but after setting the car up, Rosberg was faster in FP2/3 and qualy, only in Race Schumi was equal or better. And this year in quali even when Rosberg is ahead in a session its no more then a few tenths of tenths, unlike last year when it was between 2-3 tenths. Implying in raw talent Schumacher was always greater but half good with setting up what he wanted to not feeling the car well, perhaps the car was not in his taste, and maybe this year it is.

I also think in todays race most front running teams were geared for a dry setup, vs teams like Sauber and Ferrari betting on a wet race and consequently, with decent wet setups.

aryan

26th March 2012, 01:29

I've never rated him. Yes he's fast over a single lap, but IMHO he's always lacked in race craft.

Could I end up in the humble pie thread soon? Sure, it's possible, he could turn out to be another Button or Hakkinen, but I have a feeling that this guy is not WDC material and has always been over-rated.

wedge

26th March 2012, 02:30

People forget MB-AMG is just not good over a race stint.

First Vettel blew by then he was being passed left, right & centre by Kimi & co.

He's the new Webber/Button. Good/solid in a decent car but we won't know just how good he is unless he's in top machinery.

aryan

26th March 2012, 02:44

People forget MB-AMG is just not good over a race stint.

Is it as bad as it is coming across though?

I grant you that the Merc is better in qualifying trim than it is in race, but is it this bad, or is it the drivers who are falling back during the race?

Schumacher is still a brilliant driver, but let's be honest, he's 43 now. It's not out of the realm of possibility that his race pace over a long weekend like Malaysia in hot and humid conditions is not as good as his qualifying pace. Which leaves us with Rosberg. And the fact that his race pace is even worse than Schumacher's leads me to think that his race craft is not that great (and he has never done anything to prove me otherwise, apart from his debut in Bahrain 2006 probably).

Again, I'm not saying that the car doesn't have problems. It certainly does, and it certainly is not as fact in race as it is in qualifying. But I think the car's problems are being confounded by its drivers.

Ranger

26th March 2012, 04:33

It's a no-win situation for Nico:

If Nico beats Michael, then it's to be expected because 'Schumacher is 43 and not at his peak'. (Used a lot in 2010 and 2011)

If he doesn't, then it's still because 'Schumacher is 43 and not at his peak' - therefore Nico just isn't that good a driver.

These arguments will always exist so long as Mercedes has a car that doesn't have good race pace.

call_me_andrew

26th March 2012, 05:04

I do not recall him being beaten by Schumacher last year.

zako85

26th March 2012, 14:41

The fact that Mercedes AMG cars have scored only one point so far should start to raise one's eye brow by now. The qualifying in Australia and Malaysia showed that Mercedes cars are borderline the fastest on a single lap, or at very least they should belong the the "pack" of cars that can fight for podiums. If team Mercedes does not move above 4th place in constructor's championship this year again, a driver shake up should be in order IMO.

DexDexter

26th March 2012, 15:01

I think there's far more to Nico than just his surname. He is a very talented driver. A very talented driver who's going through a bad patch in a car that (apart from that clever duct thingy which is only good for qualy) is a bit of a pig.

Nico's just having a rough batch like Hamilton last year or Kimi in 2008. It's normal and doesn't mean he is suddenly a bad driver. Maybe he's got the wrong licence though, that might be the problem. I remember him winning races in BMW ADAC and listening to the Finnish national anthem. :)

odykas

26th March 2012, 15:09

2011 Season

7. Nico Rosberg 89 pts
8. Michael Schumacher 79 pts
2010 Season

7. Nico Rosberg 142 pts
9. Michael Schumacher 72 pts
It doesn't seem that bad to me ;)

Knock-on

26th March 2012, 16:59

It may come as no surprise that I don't consider Schumacher to be in the top echelon of the current crop of drivers anyway. He retired a couple of years after his peak and should have stayed retired. He's ok at peddling a car around the track but he thinks he's as quick as he used to be. There are also a few very good drivers around that would have been at least on par with him in his hey-day. We know who they are.

This leaves us with Nico.

I was one of the few people that claimed that Nico would hand Schumacher his ass on a plate and of course, I was accused of being a hater etc., etc. No humble pie thread for me ioan :laugh: :D However, I don't rate Nico too highly either. One of the pundits summed it up well the other day when they said Nico will drive to the cars capability but no further. He's never going to get that additional 1% like Alonso or Lewis will but will be a good mid-level driver for a number of years.

Bit of a Trulli.

BDunnell

26th March 2012, 17:07

It may come as no surprise that I don't consider Schumacher to be in the top echelon of the current crop of drivers anyway. He retired a couple of years after his peak and should have stayed retired.

Seeing him qualifying back up at the sharp end, I'm not sure if I think that way any more. Given that the car is clearly crap over a race distance, we're not seeing what he can do in that regard either, so I'm now more prepared to give his comeback the benefit of the doubt.

P3ws

26th March 2012, 17:09

It is not the drivers fault that the car eats rubber faster than the competition.
IMHO Nico is a very good driver. Remember he almost got a win when Renault cheated to get Alonso the win in Singapore a couple of years back.

Knock-on

26th March 2012, 17:12

BDunnell

26th March 2012, 17:14

I think a few drivers would be more than happy with that Merc. It doesn't look too bad to me. May not be the fastest out there but it's pretty close to the top. I just think the 2 drivers aren't the best out there and some others might get a bit more. Schumy's not doing a bad job this year but was let down last week with a rare mechanical fault while in a good 3rd place.

I'm sure an Alonso or a Vettel must be classed as superior to Schumacher or Rosberg, but, let's face it, neither of them are about to touch Mercedes with a bargepole, are they?

Knock-on

26th March 2012, 17:26

I'm sure an Alonso or a Vettel must be classed as superior to Schumacher or Rosberg, but, let's face it, neither of them are about to touch Mercedes with a bargepole, are they?

Agree.

jens

26th March 2012, 18:25

Schumacher is still a brilliant driver, but let's be honest, he's 43 now. It's not out of the realm of possibility that his race pace over a long weekend like Malaysia in hot and humid conditions is not as good as his qualifying pace.

I find this kind of thought quite unusual in the light of last two seasons, when it was obvious that Schumacher was better in the race than qualifying. To be honest, despite qualifying into Top3, I'm still not convinced that Schumacher is extracting the last tenth from that car on Saturdays (so, could it be on pole?). But I'm more convinced about his race pace. Last year Schumi proved that he can manage those fragile Pirelli tyres pretty well. So if he is slow now, I have no doubt the car is slow. And let's be honest, even Senna and all kinds of rookie drivers in midfield teams were driving circles around Merc's once the tyres fell apart. One may think about Mercedes drivers what they want, but they are not that bad!

BDunnell

26th March 2012, 18:34

I find this kind of thought quite unusual in the light of last two seasons, when it was obvious that Schumacher was better in the race than qualifying. To be honest, despite qualifying into Top3, I'm still not convinced that Schumacher is extracting the last tenth from that car on Saturdays (so, could it be on pole?). But I'm more convinced about his race pace. Last year Schumi proved that he can manage those fragile Pirelli tyres pretty well. So if he is slow now, I have no doubt the car is slow. And let's be honest, even Senna and all kinds of rookie drivers in midfield teams were driving circles around Merc's once the tyres fell apart. One may think about Mercedes drivers what they want, but they are not that bad!

I would tend to agree. But do you not also find Rosberg very hard to work out as a driver, largely because of the not-quite-front-running cars he's found himself in? He remains something of an enigma, and oddly forgettable, despite obvious talent that I would far from write off entirely. F1 journalists whose opinions I generally respect rate him very highly, to the point that one very rarely reads a critical word about him in the British press at least.

steveaki13

26th March 2012, 21:13

I think Rosberg is doing a solid job over the last 2 years, but maybe he is just not a front running driver.

i_max2k2

27th March 2012, 02:24

I think we are trying to judge too much from 2 races. Schumi has been driving the car well in the last 2 quali's and rosberg hasn't, nothing so far justifies that mercs are half decent in race vs quali, so lets see how China goes or wherever both drivers finish the race incident free.

rjbetty

27th March 2012, 03:13

I was one of the few people that claimed that Nico would hand Schumacher his ass on a plate and of course, I was accused of being a hater etc., etc. No humble pie thread for me ioan :laugh: :D

Well done! Glad to see I wasn't on my own! Sure felt like it before the 2010 season started. :p

To be a complete smart@$$ I will also throw in that I expected it to be a big 3, not 4 for 2010 with Mercedes WELL off the pace and not winning a race. :p

Sure was lonely until the season got underway...

I could still eat some humble pie really...

Re Nico: I read Mark Hughes' piece on the Sky website and thought it was really good. He was giving his thoughts on certain drivers. Of Rosberg he said something like he has no doubt whatsoever that Nico would deliver the championship in the best car, but that he basically won't win in an unwinning car or transcend it (like Alonso just now in Malaysia).

P3ws

27th March 2012, 10:08

Transcend this if Renault would not have cheated. Singapore 2008 (http://f1-facts.com/results/race/2008/680)
Just my point of view.

Hawkmoon

27th March 2012, 10:11

Bit of a Trulli.

That's a little harsh. I think Rosberg is a fair bit better than Trulli. I'd put him in the Patrese, Berger, Barrichello category. Solid number twos who can win on occasion but whom you wouldn't want to rely on for a championship.

Knock-on

27th March 2012, 10:59

That's a little harsh. I think Rosberg is a fair bit better than Trulli. I'd put him in the Patrese, Berger, Barrichello category. Solid number twos who can win on occasion but whom you wouldn't want to rely on for a championship.

Yep, fair enough. I was thnking Patrese and Rubens as well but just opted for Trulli as an example.

George6890

27th March 2012, 12:30

Hey! What's wrong with Jarno?! He had the legs on Alonso in 2004, I doubt Rosberg would have managed that in that twitchy R24.

jens

27th March 2012, 15:37

That's a little harsh. I think Rosberg is a fair bit better than Trulli. I'd put him in the Patrese, Berger, Barrichello category. Solid number twos who can win on occasion but whom you wouldn't want to rely on for a championship.

Maybe that's a little harsh on Trulli. ;) His past couple of seasons were so underwhelming that people have already forgotten, how fast he was in his prime. Certainly your last description of a "solid number two, who can win on occasion" would apply here.

fandango

27th March 2012, 18:44

I remember in 2006 when I thought this guy was special.

Six seasons later, and he's being outpaced by a guy who is almost 'middle aged'. In short, I'm not too convinced anymore.

What do we all think? :)

I don't know how you can say such a thing!! Schumacher is most definitely middle-aged!

F1boat

27th March 2012, 19:20

I think that Nico is a decent driver, but not a great driver. Like Alesi, Trulli or Heidfeld. He may become better if he wins, but for now I think that he chokes under pressure and his biggest achievement is beating an old driver who is way, way past his prime. Besides, the gap between Rosberg jr and Michael was smaller in 2011 then in 2010 and now maybe it will get even smaller or Michael will beat him. This means that Rosberg jr. doesn't develop very much as a driver. He has some occasional flashes of brilliance, but I think that he is not a world-beater.

aryan

28th March 2012, 07:31

Yep, fair enough. I was thnking Patrese and Rubens as well but just opted for Trulli as an example.

You know, if Rosberg wants to be considered in that same category, he actually needs to win races. Even Jarno won a GP, something that can't be said of Rosberg (yet)

Hey! What's wrong with Jarno?! He had the legs on Alonso in 2004, I doubt Rosberg would have managed that in that twitchy R24.

A good point, and one that most people forget. Jarno beat Alonso fair and square in 2004, despite Flavio's antics.

call_me_andrew

17th April 2012, 03:10

Would anyone like to make a retraction?

Big Ben

17th April 2012, 09:01

No. We, the armchair experts, are very demanding people. We expect only the best from everyone else.

Knock-on

17th April 2012, 12:36

Would anyone like to make a retraction?

It may come as no surprise that I don't consider Schumacher to be in the top echelon of the current crop of drivers anyway. He retired a couple of years after his peak and should have stayed retired. He's ok at peddling a car around the track but he thinks he's as quick as he used to be. There are also a few very good drivers around that would have been at least on par with him in his hey-day. We know who they are.

This leaves us with Nico.

I was one of the few people that claimed that Nico would hand Schumacher his ass on a plate and of course, I was accused of being a hater etc., etc. No humble pie thread for me ioan :laugh: :D However, I don't rate Nico too highly either. One of the pundits summed it up well the other day when they said Nico will drive to the cars capability but no further. He's never going to get that additional 1% like Alonso or Lewis will but will be a good mid-level driver for a number of years.

Bit of a Trulli.

I've already retracted by saying comparing him to Trulli was a bit harsh. Rubens would be a better comparison :D

What Nico did on Sunday was drive the car to the maximum. It was a very fast car and should have been a Mercedes 1 / 2. A competent drive in F1 should do no less. Everything else I said I stand by 100%

i_max2k2

17th April 2012, 16:27

I've already retracted by saying comparing him to Trulli was a bit harsh. Rubens would be a better comparison :D

What Nico did on Sunday was drive the car to the maximum. It was a very fast car and should have been a Mercedes 1 / 2. A competent drive in F1 should do no less. Everything else I said I stand by 100%
Forgive me if you dint mean this, but are you suggesting Schumacher should have jumped out of the car fixed his wheel nut and got back to racing?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Mark

17th April 2012, 17:07

That's not how I read it. It should have been a Merc 1-2 if it wasn't for the pit crew.

F1boat

18th April 2012, 10:40

Would anyone like to make a retraction?

Yes. Me. I was surprised that he kept his cool and won so convincingly. Now maybe he will be more relaxed and more success will come.

SGWilko

18th April 2012, 11:43

Forgive me if you dint mean this, but are you suggesting Schumacher should have jumped out of the car fixed his wheel nut and got back to racing?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Are you being serious? Of course he should, and he should have had a bacon butty (religious beliefs permitting, of course) with greasy fingers before he carried on to p2!!!

Knock-on

18th April 2012, 14:39

Forgive me if you dint mean this, but are you suggesting Schumacher should have jumped out of the car fixed his wheel nut and got back to racing?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

:confused:

All I was saying was that the Mercedes was head and shoulders above the rest of the field and any of the top 10 drivers out there should have peddled them to the 1st and 2nd positions. The only reason it didn't happen was because of a mechanical DNF of Schumachers car.

i_max2k2

20th April 2012, 01:33

:confused:

All I was saying was that the Mercedes was head and shoulders above the rest of the field and any of the top 10 drivers out there should have peddled them to the 1st and 2nd positions. The only reason it didn't happen was because of a mechanical DNF of Schumachers car.

I read it the other way round, thats why I said forgive me if I dint read it right, there are plenty of schumacher haters who somehow always blame it on him, one way or another.

jens

20th April 2012, 15:39

:confused:

All I was saying was that the Mercedes was head and shoulders above the rest of the field and any of the top 10 drivers out there should have peddled them to the 1st and 2nd positions.

I'm not so sure that Mercedes was clearly above others in race trim. Had Button and Hamilton not been stuck in traffic, they may well have beaten Rosberg. But as it was, 5-place grid penalty and botched pitstop dropped both McLaren drivers further behind.

F1boat

20th April 2012, 18:23

I'm not so sure that Mercedes was clearly above others in race trim. Had Button and Hamilton not been stuck in traffic, they may well have beaten Rosberg. But as it was, 5-place grid penalty and botched pitstop dropped both McLaren drivers further behind.

I agree...

Garry Walker

21st April 2012, 14:19

However, I don't rate Nico too highly either. One of the pundits summed it up well the other day when they said Nico will drive to the cars capability but no further. He's never going to get that additional 1% like Alonso or Lewis will but will be a good mid-level driver for a number of years.

Bit of a Trulli.No driver, not Alonso, not Lewis, not Senna, not Schumacher, will ever drive the car faster than it is capable of.

I'm not so sure that Mercedes was clearly above others in race trim. Had Button and Hamilton not been stuck in traffic, they may well have beaten Rosberg. But as it was, 5-place grid penalty and botched pitstop dropped both McLaren drivers further behind.

McLaren was not faster than Mercedes at China, no way. Some people have gotten it in their heads that McLaren is the fastest car and reality seems irrelevant.

Knock-on

21st April 2012, 16:15

Ok Garry. what i mean is that drivers like Lewis and Fred seem capable of wringing performances out of the car that others cant.

Dave B

21st April 2012, 16:51

Ok Garry. what i mean is that drivers like Lewis and Fred seem capable of wringing performances out of the car that others cant.
That probably says more about their team mates, certainly in the case of Alonso. But remember when Rosberg was consistently whooping Nakajima, week in week out, and the Japanese driver was being slated? I said at the time that perhaps Rosberg was better then he was being given credit for. I said the same when others were saying that Schumacher had lost it. I've had faith in Nico for a while now and it looks as if I may have been justified.

P3ws

22nd April 2012, 09:27

Ive had faith in him since this race Singapore 2008 - classification (http://f1-facts.com/outcomes/race/2008/680/classification)

P3ws

22nd April 2012, 09:31

Thing is in that race Nico got a 10sec penalty for refuelling when pitlane was closed. Still got that 2nd place.
And we all know who benefited the most of the first SC.

F1boat

22nd April 2012, 10:45

Did he make a mistake yesterday or the Merc was simply slow?

Garry Walker

22nd April 2012, 10:48

Did he make a mistake yesterday or the Merc was simply slow?

He didn't get a clean lap, but I don't get why they decided to do only one lap and didn't even do a lap on used tyres for safety.

P3ws

22nd April 2012, 11:02

The circuit is very windy. And you can loose/gain up to a second a lap depending which direction the wind blows.
Think LH stated that too in interviews.

Clean lap or not he saved a set of tires and perhaps Merc needs just that.

airshifter

22nd April 2012, 16:32

Good to see Nico fighting so hard today. I'm not sure what will come of his aggressive moves blocking, but the camera angles we got here couldn't really tell the story. I'm left with the impression that it was just hard fighting from Nico, but other camera angles might tell another story.

jens

22nd April 2012, 16:59

Good to see Nico fighting so hard today.

When I saw Nico's defensive driving, I thought he had taken some lessons from his team-mate in order to become a hard racer. ;)

djparky

22nd April 2012, 17:55

thought Nico was uncomfortably Schumacher-esque today- pushed it a bit too near the limit. Don't expect that kind of dirty driving from anyone other than Schuey

dj_bytedisaster

22nd April 2012, 19:24

thought Nico was uncomfortably Schumacher-esque today- pushed it a bit too near the limit. Don't expect that kind of dirty driving from anyone other than Schuey

Schumacher hardly invented that. If you rewatch some 80's races of Senna against Berger or Senna against Mansell, Schumacher will look like a catholic choir-girl. Admittedly, Rosberg pushed his luck today, but in the end he made it work. That only shows that he is a true racer. We've seen seen such things in just about every season. Just remember Alonso's squeeze against Vettel last year at Monza and squeezing an opponent into the pit-exit lane at the end of the main straight has almost become the norm. I'd call that robust racing, but I've seen worst moves than today - nothing in comparison with Schumacher deliverate shunt at Jerez '97 or Senna's nerf against Prost at Suzuka (I think it was in '89).

F1boat

22nd April 2012, 20:09

so he beat the Mclarens and the Ferraris today, a good result for him.

F1boat

22nd April 2012, 20:39

Well, Nico defended and Lewis usually attacks and there is a difference in this, but now Lewis is much smarter.

CNR

22nd April 2012, 23:33

F1 : Bahrain Formula 1 race stewards rule for Rosberg against Alonso and Hamilton (http://www.f1sa.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33641:f1--bahrain-formula-1-race-stewards-rule-for-rosberg-against-alonso-and-hamilton&catid=1:f1&Itemid=157)
Rosberg was not guilty of illegally crowding neither Lewis Hamilton nor Fernando Alonso

FIA race stewards at the 2012 Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix, Garry Connelly, Radovan Novak, Emanuele Pirro and Mazen Al Hilli, have cleared Nico Rosberg of all wrongdoing.

Following several hours of deliberation, the stewards ruled that Rosberg was not guilty of illegally crowding neither Lewis Hamilton nor Fernando Alonso and in the case of the Ferrari driver, stated that Rosberg, driver of Car #8, commenced his move to the right after the exit from Turn 3 and moved to the right in a constant and continuous straight line manner without making any sudden movements and had moved to the inside of the track before the Ferrari attempted to pass.

Document 43
In relation to the incident involving Car 8 Nico Rosberg and Car 5 Fernando Alonso the Stewards, having heard from both drivers and team representatives Messrs. R. Meadows and M. Rivola, and having examined the video and telemetry evidence, unanimously decide to take no further action.

truefan72

23rd April 2012, 02:16

Lewis has used similar defensive manoeuvres in the past which is what I was comparing here. He attacked today with equal aggression to what Nico used against him and I thought it was great to see.

Henners, name me one Hamilton defensive racing manouevre that resulted in a competitor completely forced off the track.
Just one that was as dirty as Nico's

For all the talk about Hamilton's aggressive driving, He is on the receivng end of these moves and not the one instigating them

France 2008
Canada 2011
Bahrain 2012

heck, Spa 2008

These are four races where he has been dangerously pushed off the track or nearly into the wall

airshifter

23rd April 2012, 03:23

Henners, name me one Hamilton defensive racing manouevre that resulted in a competitor completely forced off the track.
Just one that was as dirty as Nico's

For all the talk about Hamilton's aggressive driving, He is on the receivng end of these moves and not the one instigating them

France 2008
Canada 2011
Bahrain 2012

heck, Spa 2008

These are four races where he has been dangerously pushed off the track or nearly into the wall

You should read the link in the post above this. Nico has been cleared on both accounts, with telemetry and video supporting that he made the moves when the other drivers were behind. By regulation he is allowed to move to defend.

I just watched both incidents again in slow motion several times. I can't see how anyone reviewing those tapes could have found Nico at fault. Both Lewis and Fernando were behind Nico when Nico made his move to defend. Had either of them simply gone straight and not followed him the cars would have had plenty of space between them. In both instances the following car followed his move to stay in the tow (draft).

F1boat

23rd April 2012, 10:43

ArrowsFA1

23rd April 2012, 11:25

Had this been at, for example, Monza then Lewis would not have had the option of passing where he did.

TMorel

23rd April 2012, 14:28

Can anyone link me to Lewis's complaints?
I know Alonso isn't happy and have read his response about it now being open season, but I've not read any actual quotes from Hamilton sulking about the maneuver nor the stewards decision.

jens

23rd April 2012, 16:22

Henners, name me one Hamilton defensive racing manouevre that resulted in a competitor completely forced off the track.

Hamilton pushed off Glock at Monza in 2008. I remember that well, Timo was very angry as it was very wet and dangerous.

SGWilko

23rd April 2012, 16:25

Hamilton pushed off Glock at Monza in 2008. I remember that well, Timo was very angry as it was very wet and dangerous.

I remember the incident, but not the circumstances - did Lewis push Glock off by maintaining the racing line?

jens

23rd April 2012, 16:45

I remember the incident, but not the circumstances - did Lewis push Glock off by maintaining the racing line?

It was close to what we saw with Alonso v Vettel last year at Monza, where Seb despite getting pushed off completed the move. You could argue that it was the racing line, but Glock was almost alongside, was left no room and had nowhere to go.

Garry Walker

23rd April 2012, 22:13

steveaki13

23rd April 2012, 23:46

Had Hamilton been alongside Nico and physically forced off track I may agree he was pushed but in this instance he was completely behind and was using the tow to get past when he chose to continue his move. Lewis has not complained and I think thats because he knows he has defended just as hard in the past. I just enjoyed the fact it was good hard racing where two aggressive sportmen battled it out. :)

My thoughts too.

It was hard but fair, just as the Schumi chop was largely Ok back in the day, and Schumacher v Hamilton was similar last year.

Thats much more exciting battling than on the DRS straight.