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TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:Points aren’t performance... Albon would have out scored Max if not for Brazil crash with Hamilton I believe. So that tells you everything about points.

But yes Italy sums it up best. Hamilton battling for the win all race with Bottas a distant 3rd all race, but through pushing the limits of his tyres to win and getting pushed off track it ended Bottas P2 and Hamilton P3. Likewise Singapore, Hamilton in for the win if they pit him at the right time but it ends P4 and P5 due to poor strategy. Spa, again Hamilton fighting for win and Bottas a distant 3rd.

Bottas has been in the fight for the win 2 times in 9 races. Hamilton 9 out of 9, I think he lead all 9 races at some point. In 6-7 of those 9 races, there was another car between Bottas and Hamilton or a large gap.

I may be the opposite, but you do seem a bit like you really try to point out Bottas's negatives at times. And not always correctly. Italy, a distant 3rd ALL race? 11 laps in he still was a fraction of a second off getting DRS from Hamilton. He didn't drop back any more that 2 seconds in this stint. As you point out Hamilton has often led a race (which isn't always down to him earning the position). Well Bottas was leading it for a few laps in this case. When he pitted, he was 8 seconds behind Hamilton in 4th, not 3rd. By the time he was 3rd, it dropped to 5 seconds when Ricciardo pitted during the VSC. Meanwhile, just before this, Bottas had done fastest lap. Within 10 laps Bottas had caught and passed Hamilton. Then spent the next 11 laps ahead.

You saying Bottas was a distant 3rd all race really is not accurate.

I am fully aware Hamilton likely will have had had more pace in hand and was stuck behind Leclerc, but as other drivers like Verstappen got away with a warning at this track last year, maybe it is fair that Leclerc got away with similar first time he does it. Bottas may also have had a slightly better strategy, but he made it work pretty well and got a better result than Hamilton. You are making him look worse than he was that race. Given that Hamilton was stuck behind Leclerc, all we actually know is that Bottas could keep up with Hamilton in the 1st stint, and caught up and got by in the 2nd stint. I think this is a good enough case for me to make a point that I think bottas overall did a betetr job that race despite Hamilton putting more pressure on Leclerc and likely being quicker.

But I agree there are not many weekends where Hamilton isn't a fair bit quicker with it more clearly slowing that.

I spoke about Bottas' positives, those 2 races. But there were 7 others. Of course you focus on the negatives, that's how you critically evaluate something.

Ok, lets say Bottas was good in Italy. That gives him 3 great/good performances of those 9 races. If you want to say Bottas was better in Italy then go it. He had the perfect strategy to win, Hamilton as the hare and Bottas the tortoise. He was better than I remember but there is no real race pace comparison as Leclerc held Hamilton up the entire race.

But you can't hide the fact, Bottas had a car to battle for all 9 races wins and realistically he was in the battle 2 or 3 times.

You say, IF this happend or that happened then Bottas would have equalled Hamilton in points. But IF Mercedes pitted Hamilton at the right time in Singapore and Leclerc was penalised in Italy as you would expect, Hamilton would have outscored him by 60+ points. IFs work both ways, lets not ignore that. The usual gulf in class between them was as apparent as ever. If Ferrari were not possible cheating, Hamilton would have won 6 or 7 races to Bottas' 2.

I think i can see your point regarding all the other races regarding performance over results. And I also agree Hamilton will have likely had better pace in Italy, but that pace and running so close to Leclerc had consequences which put him behind Bottas. And that is where I think Bottas did better and I have already explained why I think Bottas couldn't get past.

I don't get the big deal being made about Ferrari cheating. I it actually was against the rules, they shouldn't have anything count this season. And Leclerc got away with the sort of thing Verstappen constantly has. The races where i think Hamilton lost out a bit was Singapore and Japan, but not by as much as bottas in the last two races combined.

Hamilton won 3 races, Bottas 2 races. If Ferrari weren't cheating, the Hamilton would have won a lot more races. Almost certainly Spa, Monza and Singapore and maybe Japan too.

If you were to re-run the Italain GP after qualifying, which driver would you back to win it. Hamilton or Bottas? I would choose Hamilton every time. Bottas may have got the better result but Hamilton had a much greater chance to win the race.

Johnson wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:Points aren’t performance... Albon would have out scored Max if not for Brazil crash with Hamilton I believe. So that tells you everything about points.

But yes Italy sums it up best. Hamilton battling for the win all race with Bottas a distant 3rd all race, but through pushing the limits of his tyres to win and getting pushed off track it ended Bottas P2 and Hamilton P3. Likewise Singapore, Hamilton in for the win if they pit him at the right time but it ends P4 and P5 due to poor strategy. Spa, again Hamilton fighting for win and Bottas a distant 3rd.

Bottas has been in the fight for the win 2 times in 9 races. Hamilton 9 out of 9, I think he lead all 9 races at some point. In 6-7 of those 9 races, there was another car between Bottas and Hamilton or a large gap.

I may be the opposite, but you do seem a bit like you really try to point out Bottas's negatives at times. And not always correctly. Italy, a distant 3rd ALL race? 11 laps in he still was a fraction of a second off getting DRS from Hamilton. He didn't drop back any more that 2 seconds in this stint. As you point out Hamilton has often led a race (which isn't always down to him earning the position). Well Bottas was leading it for a few laps in this case. When he pitted, he was 8 seconds behind Hamilton in 4th, not 3rd. By the time he was 3rd, it dropped to 5 seconds when Ricciardo pitted during the VSC. Meanwhile, just before this, Bottas had done fastest lap. Within 10 laps Bottas had caught and passed Hamilton. Then spent the next 11 laps ahead.

You saying Bottas was a distant 3rd all race really is not accurate.

I am fully aware Hamilton likely will have had had more pace in hand and was stuck behind Leclerc, but as other drivers like Verstappen got away with a warning at this track last year, maybe it is fair that Leclerc got away with similar first time he does it. Bottas may also have had a slightly better strategy, but he made it work pretty well and got a better result than Hamilton. You are making him look worse than he was that race. Given that Hamilton was stuck behind Leclerc, all we actually know is that Bottas could keep up with Hamilton in the 1st stint, and caught up and got by in the 2nd stint. I think this is a good enough case for me to make a point that I think bottas overall did a betetr job that race despite Hamilton putting more pressure on Leclerc and likely being quicker.

But I agree there are not many weekends where Hamilton isn't a fair bit quicker with it more clearly slowing that.

I spoke about Bottas' positives, those 2 races. But there were 7 others. Of course you focus on the negatives, that's how you critically evaluate something.

Ok, lets say Bottas was good in Italy. That gives him 3 great/good performances of those 9 races. If you want to say Bottas was better in Italy then go it. He had the perfect strategy to win, Hamilton as the hare and Bottas the tortoise. He was better than I remember but there is no real race pace comparison as Leclerc held Hamilton up the entire race.

But you can't hide the fact, Bottas had a car to battle for all 9 races wins and realistically he was in the battle 2 or 3 times.

You say, IF this happend or that happened then Bottas would have equalled Hamilton in points. But IF Mercedes pitted Hamilton at the right time in Singapore and Leclerc was penalised in Italy as you would expect, Hamilton would have outscored him by 60+ points. IFs work both ways, lets not ignore that. The usual gulf in class between them was as apparent as ever. If Ferrari were not possible cheating, Hamilton would have won 6 or 7 races to Bottas' 2.

I think i can see your point regarding all the other races regarding performance over results. And I also agree Hamilton will have likely had better pace in Italy, but that pace and running so close to Leclerc had consequences which put him behind Bottas. And that is where I think Bottas did better and I have already explained why I think Bottas couldn't get past.

I don't get the big deal being made about Ferrari cheating. I it actually was against the rules, they shouldn't have anything count this season. And Leclerc got away with the sort of thing Verstappen constantly has. The races where i think Hamilton lost out a bit was Singapore and Japan, but not by as much as bottas in the last two races combined.

Hamilton won 3 races, Bottas 2 races. If Ferrari weren't cheating, the Hamilton would have won a lot more races. Almost certainly Spa, Monza and Singapore and maybe Japan too.

If you were to re-run the Italain GP after qualifying, which driver would you back to win it. Hamilton or Bottas? I would choose Hamilton every time. Bottas may have got the better result but Hamilton had a much greater chance to win the race.

As I have said, why would Ferrari get away with "cheating"? I am hearing this everywhere but I don't think I believe it unless they actually get punished for it. What evidence is there for it?

When I watched qualifying, yes, I did think Hamilton looked better, and I do believe Leclerc was holding him up and had better pace. But I look at the possible results sometimes and not the pace, and Hamilton could have done better than he did by holding back and saving his tyres and prevented Bottas getting by him later on. Him doing this "incredible job" of staying close to Leclerc for so long is what got him beat by Bottas. That is what I find amusing that people still are saying he did better. If those people are purely basing it on his ability to stay close rather than the end result, then I agree he did better.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

I may be the opposite, but you do seem a bit like you really try to point out Bottas's negatives at times. And not always correctly. Italy, a distant 3rd ALL race? 11 laps in he still was a fraction of a second off getting DRS from Hamilton. He didn't drop back any more that 2 seconds in this stint. As you point out Hamilton has often led a race (which isn't always down to him earning the position). Well Bottas was leading it for a few laps in this case. When he pitted, he was 8 seconds behind Hamilton in 4th, not 3rd. By the time he was 3rd, it dropped to 5 seconds when Ricciardo pitted during the VSC. Meanwhile, just before this, Bottas had done fastest lap. Within 10 laps Bottas had caught and passed Hamilton. Then spent the next 11 laps ahead.

You saying Bottas was a distant 3rd all race really is not accurate.

I am fully aware Hamilton likely will have had had more pace in hand and was stuck behind Leclerc, but as other drivers like Verstappen got away with a warning at this track last year, maybe it is fair that Leclerc got away with similar first time he does it. Bottas may also have had a slightly better strategy, but he made it work pretty well and got a better result than Hamilton. You are making him look worse than he was that race. Given that Hamilton was stuck behind Leclerc, all we actually know is that Bottas could keep up with Hamilton in the 1st stint, and caught up and got by in the 2nd stint. I think this is a good enough case for me to make a point that I think bottas overall did a betetr job that race despite Hamilton putting more pressure on Leclerc and likely being quicker.

But I agree there are not many weekends where Hamilton isn't a fair bit quicker with it more clearly slowing that.

I spoke about Bottas' positives, those 2 races. But there were 7 others. Of course you focus on the negatives, that's how you critically evaluate something.

Ok, lets say Bottas was good in Italy. That gives him 3 great/good performances of those 9 races. If you want to say Bottas was better in Italy then go it. He had the perfect strategy to win, Hamilton as the hare and Bottas the tortoise. He was better than I remember but there is no real race pace comparison as Leclerc held Hamilton up the entire race.

But you can't hide the fact, Bottas had a car to battle for all 9 races wins and realistically he was in the battle 2 or 3 times.

You say, IF this happend or that happened then Bottas would have equalled Hamilton in points. But IF Mercedes pitted Hamilton at the right time in Singapore and Leclerc was penalised in Italy as you would expect, Hamilton would have outscored him by 60+ points. IFs work both ways, lets not ignore that. The usual gulf in class between them was as apparent as ever. If Ferrari were not possible cheating, Hamilton would have won 6 or 7 races to Bottas' 2.

I think i can see your point regarding all the other races regarding performance over results. And I also agree Hamilton will have likely had better pace in Italy, but that pace and running so close to Leclerc had consequences which put him behind Bottas. And that is where I think Bottas did better and I have already explained why I think Bottas couldn't get past.

I don't get the big deal being made about Ferrari cheating. I it actually was against the rules, they shouldn't have anything count this season. And Leclerc got away with the sort of thing Verstappen constantly has. The races where i think Hamilton lost out a bit was Singapore and Japan, but not by as much as bottas in the last two races combined.

Hamilton won 3 races, Bottas 2 races. If Ferrari weren't cheating, the Hamilton would have won a lot more races. Almost certainly Spa, Monza and Singapore and maybe Japan too.

If you were to re-run the Italain GP after qualifying, which driver would you back to win it. Hamilton or Bottas? I would choose Hamilton every time. Bottas may have got the better result but Hamilton had a much greater chance to win the race.

As I have said, why would Ferrari get away with "cheating"? I am hearing this everywhere but I don't think I believe it unless they actually get punished for it. What evidence is there for it?

When I watched qualifying, yes, I did think Hamilton looked better, and I do believe Leclerc was holding him up and had better pace. But I look at the possible results sometimes and not the pace, and Hamilton could have done better than he did by holding back and saving his tyres and prevented Bottas getting by him later on. Him doing this "incredible job" of staying close to Leclerc for so long is what got him beat by Bottas. That is what I find amusing that people still are saying he did better. If those people are purely basing it on his ability to stay close rather than the end result, then I agree he did better.

I don't know if they cheated or not but there are reasons they may get away with it.

It would be for the FIA to punish Ferrari.

The FIA are trying to push through a huge raft of changes for 2021. Some of which hurt Ferrari like the budget cap. As Ferrari are given the special privilege of a veto they have to be kept onside or could kibosh those changes.

Hamilton could have done better and collected an easy P2 in Italy yes, but he was racing only to win. Just like Brazil, again he could have collected another easy P2 there too. But he had the title essentially wrapped up so he was only interested in race wins especially if Bottas was behind him and not going to win himself.

I never said Hamilton did an incredible job to keep up with Leclerc.

I am just objectively analysing the race weekend and specifically Bottas. He looked ok that race but Hamilton was in traffic all race. So its hard to actually analyse eithers performance. So I was incorrect in saying that Bottas was a distant 3rd all race.

Whether Ferrari cheated or not isn't my point, my point is Hamilton was up top fighting for every race win and Bottas was fighting for 4th-5th in many of those races. Brazil, Singapore, Mexico and Russia.

Bottas did win 2 races but even that took a kind of perfect storm;

Japan, he needed a perfect start to go 3rd to 1st and Hamilton to be held up by Vettel the entire first stint and then for Mercedes to not allow Hamilton to stop one less time. Japan is also Hamiltons weakest track in qualifying. Lost 3-1 to Rosberg and it was the only track Button out qualified him on, losing 2-1.

USA, he did well in both qualifying and the race. But Hamilton had an issue on his first run with his brake balance switch moving all through his lap and then on his 2nd run the track was slower and Hamilton had to push harder to find the time.

I am not taking anything away from Bottas, he won 2 races fair and square but it took a big combination of factors to win those and those are the only 2 races and maybe Italy he was ever in the hunt to win. Bottas also had a bad race in Russia which is usually his best track.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:Points aren’t performance... Albon would have out scored Max if not for Brazil crash with Hamilton I believe. So that tells you everything about points.

But yes Italy sums it up best. Hamilton battling for the win all race with Bottas a distant 3rd all race, but through pushing the limits of his tyres to win and getting pushed off track it ended Bottas P2 and Hamilton P3. Likewise Singapore, Hamilton in for the win if they pit him at the right time but it ends P4 and P5 due to poor strategy. Spa, again Hamilton fighting for win and Bottas a distant 3rd.

Bottas has been in the fight for the win 2 times in 9 races. Hamilton 9 out of 9, I think he lead all 9 races at some point. In 6-7 of those 9 races, there was another car between Bottas and Hamilton or a large gap.

I may be the opposite, but you do seem a bit like you really try to point out Bottas's negatives at times. And not always correctly. Italy, a distant 3rd ALL race? 11 laps in he still was a fraction of a second off getting DRS from Hamilton. He didn't drop back any more that 2 seconds in this stint. As you point out Hamilton has often led a race (which isn't always down to him earning the position). Well Bottas was leading it for a few laps in this case. When he pitted, he was 8 seconds behind Hamilton in 4th, not 3rd. By the time he was 3rd, it dropped to 5 seconds when Ricciardo pitted during the VSC. Meanwhile, just before this, Bottas had done fastest lap. Within 10 laps Bottas had caught and passed Hamilton. Then spent the next 11 laps ahead.

You saying Bottas was a distant 3rd all race really is not accurate.

I am fully aware Hamilton likely will have had had more pace in hand and was stuck behind Leclerc, but as other drivers like Verstappen got away with a warning at this track last year, maybe it is fair that Leclerc got away with similar first time he does it. Bottas may also have had a slightly better strategy, but he made it work pretty well and got a better result than Hamilton. You are making him look worse than he was that race. Given that Hamilton was stuck behind Leclerc, all we actually know is that Bottas could keep up with Hamilton in the 1st stint, and caught up and got by in the 2nd stint. I think this is a good enough case for me to make a point that I think bottas overall did a betetr job that race despite Hamilton putting more pressure on Leclerc and likely being quicker.

But I agree there are not many weekends where Hamilton isn't a fair bit quicker with it more clearly slowing that.

Verstappen got a penalty for his move on Bottas in Italy last year from memory, because he threw a tantrum after getting the penalty.

Hamilton can take the race to a Ferrari dominate on the straights in Monza and Bottas cant, that is the big difference between the drivers. Hamilton could have simply sat back and take 2nd and say I got the better result but that's not the attitude of a champion and one of the best, that's also another difference between Hamilton and Bottas.

Johnson wrote:Hamilton could have done better and collected an easy P2 in Italy yes, but he was racing only to win. Just like Brazil, again he could have collected another easy P2 there too. But he had the title essentially wrapped up so he was only interested in race wins especially if Bottas was behind him and not going to win himself.

I never said Hamilton did an incredible job to keep up with Leclerc.

I am just objectively analysing the race weekend and specifically Bottas. He looked ok that race but Hamilton was in traffic all race. So its hard to actually analyse eithers performance. So I was incorrect in saying that Bottas was a distant 3rd all race.

Whether Ferrari cheated or not isn't my point, my point is Hamilton was up top fighting for every race win and Bottas was fighting for 4th-5th in many of those races. Brazil, Singapore, Mexico and Russia.

Bottas did win 2 races but even that took a kind of perfect storm;

Japan, he needed a perfect start to go 3rd to 1st and Hamilton to be held up by Vettel the entire first stint and then for Mercedes to not allow Hamilton to stop one less time. Japan is also Hamiltons weakest track in qualifying. Lost 3-1 to Rosberg and it was the only track Button out qualified him on, losing 2-1.

USA, he did well in both qualifying and the race. But Hamilton had an issue on his first run with his brake balance switch moving all through his lap and then on his 2nd run the track was slower and Hamilton had to push harder to find the time.

I am not taking anything away from Bottas, he won 2 races fair and square but it took a big combination of factors to win those and those are the only 2 races and maybe Italy he was ever in the hunt to win. Bottas also had a bad race in Russia which is usually his best track.

Yea i was disappointed with Bottas in Russia especially based on his usual performance there.

I think that in Singapore, Bottas qualified about where the car is performance wise, and Hamilton simply did better than that. But once he had his pit stop, his pace seemed nowhere as he was slower than verstappen, who was already slower than Leclerc. I'm not convinced he would have kept challenging for the win given Vettel and Leclerc both looked quicker than Verstappen. Or do you think he had one of his moments where he had given up hope and wasn't really trying? He was faster than Bottas, but then Bottas had been told to slow down by over 3 seconds to apparently make his tyres last when it was more to prevent Hamilton being at risk from Albon. Bottas maybe took it easy from there and Hamilton didn't show much either for the rest of the race.

I thought many on this forum were pretty impressed by Bottas's pace in Mexico despite his crash in qualifying (more so than me at the time in fact). He came pretty close close to getting by Vettel, who was barely behind Hamilton. Both Hamilton and Bottas had bad starts here. After Leclerc had pitted (which was pretty near the start), Bottas was set for 3rd rather than 4th or 5th. He may have been in those positions at times, but them Hamilton was 3rd for a lot of it too. But neither of these represented the likely finishing position. I don't think Mexico was weak point for Bottas compared to Hamilton on race day. There wasn't a great deal of pace difference between them.

JN23 wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:Points aren’t performance... Albon would have out scored Max if not for Brazil crash with Hamilton I believe. So that tells you everything about points.

But yes Italy sums it up best. Hamilton battling for the win all race with Bottas a distant 3rd all race, but through pushing the limits of his tyres to win and getting pushed off track it ended Bottas P2 and Hamilton P3. Likewise Singapore, Hamilton in for the win if they pit him at the right time but it ends P4 and P5 due to poor strategy. Spa, again Hamilton fighting for win and Bottas a distant 3rd.

Bottas has been in the fight for the win 2 times in 9 races. Hamilton 9 out of 9, I think he lead all 9 races at some point. In 6-7 of those 9 races, there was another car between Bottas and Hamilton or a large gap.

I may be the opposite, but you do seem a bit like you really try to point out Bottas's negatives at times. And not always correctly. Italy, a distant 3rd ALL race? 11 laps in he still was a fraction of a second off getting DRS from Hamilton. He didn't drop back any more that 2 seconds in this stint. As you point out Hamilton has often led a race (which isn't always down to him earning the position). Well Bottas was leading it for a few laps in this case. When he pitted, he was 8 seconds behind Hamilton in 4th, not 3rd. By the time he was 3rd, it dropped to 5 seconds when Ricciardo pitted during the VSC. Meanwhile, just before this, Bottas had done fastest lap. Within 10 laps Bottas had caught and passed Hamilton. Then spent the next 11 laps ahead.

You saying Bottas was a distant 3rd all race really is not accurate.

I am fully aware Hamilton likely will have had had more pace in hand and was stuck behind Leclerc, but as other drivers like Verstappen got away with a warning at this track last year, maybe it is fair that Leclerc got away with similar first time he does it. Bottas may also have had a slightly better strategy, but he made it work pretty well and got a better result than Hamilton. You are making him look worse than he was that race. Given that Hamilton was stuck behind Leclerc, all we actually know is that Bottas could keep up with Hamilton in the 1st stint, and caught up and got by in the 2nd stint. I think this is a good enough case for me to make a point that I think bottas overall did a betetr job that race despite Hamilton putting more pressure on Leclerc and likely being quicker.

But I agree there are not many weekends where Hamilton isn't a fair bit quicker with it more clearly slowing that.

Verstappen got a penalty for his move on Bottas in Italy last year from memory, because he threw a tantrum after getting the penalty.

Much earlier on in the race, Bottas made an attempt on the inside of Verstappen, verstappen locked up and released the breaks and cuts the corner. He gets away with this. Then gets a penalty for what happens later. They sometimes are a little slack on certain things and I am wondering if they forgave Leclerc first time and would have punished him if he did something later.

https://www.facebook.com/MercedesAMGF1/ ... 859591028/


and a dodgy vid

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

JN23 wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:Points aren’t performance... Albon would have out scored Max if not for Brazil crash with Hamilton I believe. So that tells you everything about points.

But yes Italy sums it up best. Hamilton battling for the win all race with Bottas a distant 3rd all race, but through pushing the limits of his tyres to win and getting pushed off track it ended Bottas P2 and Hamilton P3. Likewise Singapore, Hamilton in for the win if they pit him at the right time but it ends P4 and P5 due to poor strategy. Spa, again Hamilton fighting for win and Bottas a distant 3rd.

Bottas has been in the fight for the win 2 times in 9 races. Hamilton 9 out of 9, I think he lead all 9 races at some point. In 6-7 of those 9 races, there was another car between Bottas and Hamilton or a large gap.

I may be the opposite, but you do seem a bit like you really try to point out Bottas's negatives at times. And not always correctly. Italy, a distant 3rd ALL race? 11 laps in he still was a fraction of a second off getting DRS from Hamilton. He didn't drop back any more that 2 seconds in this stint. As you point out Hamilton has often led a race (which isn't always down to him earning the position). Well Bottas was leading it for a few laps in this case. When he pitted, he was 8 seconds behind Hamilton in 4th, not 3rd. By the time he was 3rd, it dropped to 5 seconds when Ricciardo pitted during the VSC. Meanwhile, just before this, Bottas had done fastest lap. Within 10 laps Bottas had caught and passed Hamilton. Then spent the next 11 laps ahead.

You saying Bottas was a distant 3rd all race really is not accurate.

I am fully aware Hamilton likely will have had had more pace in hand and was stuck behind Leclerc, but as other drivers like Verstappen got away with a warning at this track last year, maybe it is fair that Leclerc got away with similar first time he does it. Bottas may also have had a slightly better strategy, but he made it work pretty well and got a better result than Hamilton. You are making him look worse than he was that race. Given that Hamilton was stuck behind Leclerc, all we actually know is that Bottas could keep up with Hamilton in the 1st stint, and caught up and got by in the 2nd stint. I think this is a good enough case for me to make a point that I think bottas overall did a betetr job that race despite Hamilton putting more pressure on Leclerc and likely being quicker.

But I agree there are not many weekends where Hamilton isn't a fair bit quicker with it more clearly slowing that.

Verstappen got a penalty for his move on Bottas in Italy last year from memory, because he threw a tantrum after getting the penalty.

Much earlier on in the race, Bottas made an attempt on the inside of Verstappen, verstappen locked up and released the breaks and cuts the corner. He gets away with this. Then gets a penalty for what happens later. They sometimes are a little slack on certain things and I am wondering if they forgave Leclerc first time and would have punished him if he did something later.

Both broke the rules though which is kind of the point.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:Hamilton could have done better and collected an easy P2 in Italy yes, but he was racing only to win. Just like Brazil, again he could have collected another easy P2 there too. But he had the title essentially wrapped up so he was only interested in race wins especially if Bottas was behind him and not going to win himself.

I never said Hamilton did an incredible job to keep up with Leclerc.

I am just objectively analysing the race weekend and specifically Bottas. He looked ok that race but Hamilton was in traffic all race. So its hard to actually analyse eithers performance. So I was incorrect in saying that Bottas was a distant 3rd all race.

Whether Ferrari cheated or not isn't my point, my point is Hamilton was up top fighting for every race win and Bottas was fighting for 4th-5th in many of those races. Brazil, Singapore, Mexico and Russia.

Bottas did win 2 races but even that took a kind of perfect storm;

Japan, he needed a perfect start to go 3rd to 1st and Hamilton to be held up by Vettel the entire first stint and then for Mercedes to not allow Hamilton to stop one less time. Japan is also Hamiltons weakest track in qualifying. Lost 3-1 to Rosberg and it was the only track Button out qualified him on, losing 2-1.

USA, he did well in both qualifying and the race. But Hamilton had an issue on his first run with his brake balance switch moving all through his lap and then on his 2nd run the track was slower and Hamilton had to push harder to find the time.

I am not taking anything away from Bottas, he won 2 races fair and square but it took a big combination of factors to win those and those are the only 2 races and maybe Italy he was ever in the hunt to win. Bottas also had a bad race in Russia which is usually his best track.

Yea i was disappointed with Bottas in Russia especially based on his usual performance there.

I think that in Singapore, Bottas qualified about where the car is performance wise, and Hamilton simply did better than that. But once he had his pit stop, his pace seemed nowhere as he was slower than verstappen, who was already slower than Leclerc. I'm not convinced he would have kept challenging for the win given Vettel and Leclerc both looked quicker than Verstappen. Or do you think he had one of his moments where he had given up hope and wasn't really trying? He was faster than Bottas, but then Bottas had been told to slow down by over 3 seconds to apparently make his tyres last when it was more to prevent Hamilton being at risk from Albon. Bottas maybe took it easy from there and Hamilton didn't show much either for the rest of the race.

I thought many on this forum were pretty impressed by Bottas's pace in Mexico despite his crash in qualifying (more so than me at the time in fact). He came pretty close close to getting by Vettel, who was barely behind Hamilton. Both Hamilton and Bottas had bad starts here. After Leclerc had pitted (which was pretty near the start), Bottas was set for 3rd rather than 4th or 5th. He may have been in those positions at times, but them Hamilton was 3rd for a lot of it too. But neither of these represented the likely finishing position. I don't think Mexico was weak point for Bottas compared to Hamilton on race day. There wasn't a great deal of pace difference between them.

Singapore is 100% track position, pace is irrevelant. Hence how Leclerc could drive 3-4 seconds off the ultimate pace for the entire first stint and nobody could get near him.

Mercedes pits Hamilton as soon as the window opened up (the same lap as Vettel) and he wins the race, simple as that. In fact the window was opened for Hamilton a lap earlier than that.

Hamilton out qualified Bottas by 0.650 in Singapore, there is no way Bottas got what the car deserved. That's nonsense.

Mexico, Bottas was ok, but beaten by a Ferrari when he ran an optimum strategy.

Johnson wrote:

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

Johnson wrote:Hamilton could have done better and collected an easy P2 in Italy yes, but he was racing only to win. Just like Brazil, again he could have collected another easy P2 there too. But he had the title essentially wrapped up so he was only interested in race wins especially if Bottas was behind him and not going to win himself.

I never said Hamilton did an incredible job to keep up with Leclerc.

I am just objectively analysing the race weekend and specifically Bottas. He looked ok that race but Hamilton was in traffic all race. So its hard to actually analyse eithers performance. So I was incorrect in saying that Bottas was a distant 3rd all race.

Whether Ferrari cheated or not isn't my point, my point is Hamilton was up top fighting for every race win and Bottas was fighting for 4th-5th in many of those races. Brazil, Singapore, Mexico and Russia.

Bottas did win 2 races but even that took a kind of perfect storm;

Japan, he needed a perfect start to go 3rd to 1st and Hamilton to be held up by Vettel the entire first stint and then for Mercedes to not allow Hamilton to stop one less time. Japan is also Hamiltons weakest track in qualifying. Lost 3-1 to Rosberg and it was the only track Button out qualified him on, losing 2-1.

USA, he did well in both qualifying and the race. But Hamilton had an issue on his first run with his brake balance switch moving all through his lap and then on his 2nd run the track was slower and Hamilton had to push harder to find the time.

I am not taking anything away from Bottas, he won 2 races fair and square but it took a big combination of factors to win those and those are the only 2 races and maybe Italy he was ever in the hunt to win. Bottas also had a bad race in Russia which is usually his best track.

Yea i was disappointed with Bottas in Russia especially based on his usual performance there.

I think that in Singapore, Bottas qualified about where the car is performance wise, and Hamilton simply did better than that. But once he had his pit stop, his pace seemed nowhere as he was slower than verstappen, who was already slower than Leclerc. I'm not convinced he would have kept challenging for the win given Vettel and Leclerc both looked quicker than Verstappen. Or do you think he had one of his moments where he had given up hope and wasn't really trying? He was faster than Bottas, but then Bottas had been told to slow down by over 3 seconds to apparently make his tyres last when it was more to prevent Hamilton being at risk from Albon. Bottas maybe took it easy from there and Hamilton didn't show much either for the rest of the race.

I thought many on this forum were pretty impressed by Bottas's pace in Mexico despite his crash in qualifying (more so than me at the time in fact). He came pretty close close to getting by Vettel, who was barely behind Hamilton. Both Hamilton and Bottas had bad starts here. After Leclerc had pitted (which was pretty near the start), Bottas was set for 3rd rather than 4th or 5th. He may have been in those positions at times, but them Hamilton was 3rd for a lot of it too. But neither of these represented the likely finishing position. I don't think Mexico was weak point for Bottas compared to Hamilton on race day. There wasn't a great deal of pace difference between them.

Singapore is 100% track position, pace is irrevelant. Hence how Leclerc could drive 3-4 seconds off the ultimate pace for the entire first stint and nobody could get near him.

Mercedes pits Hamilton as soon as the window opened up (the same lap as Vettel) and he wins the race, simple as that. In fact the window was opened for Hamilton a lap earlier than that.

Hamilton out qualified Bottas by 0.650 in Singapore, there is no way Bottas got what the car deserved. That's nonsense.

Mexico, Bottas was ok, but beaten by a Ferrari when he ran an optimum strategy.

I think Bottas got a decent enough run given his lap was compromised. Even I had forgot this happened. Bottas had backed off the car ahead while preparing his lap and right as he did this, Hamilton drove by. I don't think the gap will have been this large if Hamilton didn't do this. But then you could say if Hamilton hadn't overtook, Hamilton's own lap may have been effected. Bottas did question at the time why Hamilton passed him as he was too close to get a start without having to back off to much.

Hamilton has out qualified Bottas by 0.700, 0.700 and 0.650 at Singapore. He may well have got a little closer in 2019 but that’s his level at that track. He isn’t very good there.

Johnson wrote:Hamilton has out qualified Bottas by 0.700, 0.700 and 0.650 at Singapore. He may well have got a little closer in 2019 but that’s his level at that track. He isn’t very good there.

The fact that he was well under a tenth in his first run and was effected at the start of his 2nd doesn't indicate he likely lost a bit this time though? Not saying he was going to be that close to hamilton, but I don't think this gap was representative as Hamilton overtook Bottas just as Bottas was about to start his. They were close to even before this, but Hamilton visible made a mistake that run.

Lewis Hamilton and Valentino Rossi: The ultimate F1, MotoGP job swap
https://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12433 ... p-job-swap

Longer version.

shoot999 wrote:

Longer version.

Slightly interesting fact I've just noticed.

Lewis Hamilton is the only driver to start every race of the decade.

mikeyg123 wrote:Slightly interesting fact I've just noticed.

Lewis Hamilton is the only driver to start every race of the decade.

Him and Vettel?

Siao7 wrote:

mikeyg123 wrote:Slightly interesting fact I've just noticed.

Lewis Hamilton is the only driver to start every race of the decade.

Him and Vettel?

No, Vettel didn't start one. I think i remember him having a break down on a formation lap? Hamilton has 198 starts and Vettel has 197. Hamilton may well have the longest run of unbroken starts ever actually.

mikeyg123 wrote:

Siao7 wrote:

mikeyg123 wrote:Slightly interesting fact I've just noticed.

Lewis Hamilton is the only driver to start every race of the decade.

Him and Vettel?

No, Vettel didn't start one. I think i remember him having a break down on a formation lap? Hamilton has 198 starts and Vettel has 197. Hamilton may well have the longest run of unbroken starts ever actually.

Bahrain 2016.

TheGiantHogweed wrote:

mikeyg123 wrote:

Siao7 wrote:

mikeyg123 wrote:Slightly interesting fact I've just noticed.

Lewis Hamilton is the only driver to start every race of the decade.

Him and Vettel?

No, Vettel didn't start one. I think i remember him having a break down on a formation lap? Hamilton has 198 starts and Vettel has 197. Hamilton may well have the longest run of unbroken starts ever actually.

Bahrain 2016.

Ah, ok, thank you. I was thinking missing a race for other reasons like illness or something, but yeah, he broke down in the formation lap.

JN23 wrote:A worthy nomination for the BBC’s sports personality of the year for Hamilton. He probably won’t win and I don’t think he’d get my vote if I bothered voting.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/sports-personality/50471639

Other nominations are: Ben Stokes, Alun-Wyn Jones, Raheem Sterling, Dina Asher-Smith, Katarina Johnson-Thompson.

Hamilton came second so congrats to him for that I believe he is now joint top in the most top third finishes in this award (1 win and 4 second places).

Stokes won and Dina Asher-Smith third.

All i know about Stokes he has spent half the last few years suspended or banned, or up in front of the magistrate

shoot999 wrote:All i know about Stokes he has spent half the last few years suspended or banned, or up in front of the magistrate

Then you missed 2 of the most magnificent sporting moments of the century, he was the inevitable winner.

Option or Prime wrote:

shoot999 wrote:All i know about Stokes he has spent half the last few years suspended or banned, or up in front of the magistrate

Then you missed 2 of the most magnificent sporting moments of the century, he was the inevitable winner.

This is interesting as so often the private life of a sportsperson is taken into account - how often has Lewis Hamilton been attacked for his lifestyle for example and it factors into how people perceive him.

To go from a drunken thug to a national sporting hero in a relatively short period of time is impressive to be fair.

scouseknight wrote:

Option or Prime wrote:

shoot999 wrote:All i know about Stokes he has spent half the last few years suspended or banned, or up in front of the magistrate

Then you missed 2 of the most magnificent sporting moments of the century, he was the inevitable winner.

This is interesting as so often the private life of a sportsperson is taken into account - how often has Lewis Hamilton been attacked for his lifestyle for example and it factors into how people perceive him.

To go from a drunken thug to a national sporting hero in a relatively short period of time is impressive to be fair.

It certainly demonstrates the 'personality' side of it! Congrats to him though; it was his stand-out moments that won England the Cricket World Cup and coming from a rather low point earlier in the year at that.
Hamilton certainly has personality - whether you like it or not is another thing - but, coupled with a ruthlessly consistent season, is justification enough for runner-up.
Mention to Dina Asher-Smith, who is simply a great personality as far as I am concerned. Good on her.

JN23 wrote:

JN23 wrote:A worthy nomination for the BBC’s sports personality of the year for Hamilton. He probably won’t win and I don’t think he’d get my vote if I bothered voting.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/sports-personality/50471639

Other nominations are: Ben Stokes, Alun-Wyn Jones, Raheem Sterling, Dina Asher-Smith, Katarina Johnson-Thompson.

Hamilton came second so congrats to him for that I believe he is now joint top in the most top third finishes in this award (1 win and 4 second places).

Stokes won and Dina Asher-Smith third.

Right I was out and missed it, no surprise to see Stokes win it so in that case second place for Hamilton wasn't too bad.

Didn't win the domestic award, but does win the premier global award.

Johnson wrote:Hamilton could have done better and collected an easy P2 in Italy yes, but he was racing only to win. Just like Brazil, again he could have collected another easy P2 there too. But he had the title essentially wrapped up so he was only interested in race wins especially if Bottas was behind him and not going to win himself.

I never said Hamilton did an incredible job to keep up with Leclerc.

I am just objectively analysing the race weekend and specifically Bottas. He looked ok that race but Hamilton was in traffic all race. So its hard to actually analyse eithers performance. So I was incorrect in saying that Bottas was a distant 3rd all race.

Whether Ferrari cheated or not isn't my point, my point is Hamilton was up top fighting for every race win and Bottas was fighting for 4th-5th in many of those races. Brazil, Singapore, Mexico and Russia.

Bottas did win 2 races but even that took a kind of perfect storm;

Japan, he needed a perfect start to go 3rd to 1st and Hamilton to be held up by Vettel the entire first stint and then for Mercedes to not allow Hamilton to stop one less time. Japan is also Hamiltons weakest track in qualifying. Lost 3-1 to Rosberg and it was the only track Button out qualified him on, losing 2-1.

USA, he did well in both qualifying and the race. But Hamilton had an issue on his first run with his brake balance switch moving all through his lap and then on his 2nd run the track was slower and Hamilton had to push harder to find the time.

I am not taking anything away from Bottas, he won 2 races fair and square but it took a big combination of factors to win those and those are the only 2 races and maybe Italy he was ever in the hunt to win. Bottas also had a bad race in Russia which is usually his best track.

Bottas looked significantly quicker than Hamilton in Japan to me.

The first stint was the only stint where they were on equal tyres, and Bottas was clearly quicker than Hamilton in this stint.

Hamilton didn’t even get in Vettel’s DRS until lap 15, by that lap Bottas had already established a very firm lead.

In the first 10 laps of the race, Vettel was easily keeping Hamilton at bay. The gap between them was constantly over 2 seconds. Meanwhile Bottas was building a lead over Vettel out front.

Bottas won Suzuka by being the faster driver.

KingVoid wrote:

Johnson wrote:Hamilton could have done better and collected an easy P2 in Italy yes, but he was racing only to win. Just like Brazil, again he could have collected another easy P2 there too. But he had the title essentially wrapped up so he was only interested in race wins especially if Bottas was behind him and not going to win himself.

I never said Hamilton did an incredible job to keep up with Leclerc.

I am just objectively analysing the race weekend and specifically Bottas. He looked ok that race but Hamilton was in traffic all race. So its hard to actually analyse eithers performance. So I was incorrect in saying that Bottas was a distant 3rd all race.

Whether Ferrari cheated or not isn't my point, my point is Hamilton was up top fighting for every race win and Bottas was fighting for 4th-5th in many of those races. Brazil, Singapore, Mexico and Russia.

Bottas did win 2 races but even that took a kind of perfect storm;

Japan, he needed a perfect start to go 3rd to 1st and Hamilton to be held up by Vettel the entire first stint and then for Mercedes to not allow Hamilton to stop one less time. Japan is also Hamiltons weakest track in qualifying. Lost 3-1 to Rosberg and it was the only track Button out qualified him on, losing 2-1.

USA, he did well in both qualifying and the race. But Hamilton had an issue on his first run with his brake balance switch moving all through his lap and then on his 2nd run the track was slower and Hamilton had to push harder to find the time.

I am not taking anything away from Bottas, he won 2 races fair and square but it took a big combination of factors to win those and those are the only 2 races and maybe Italy he was ever in the hunt to win. Bottas also had a bad race in Russia which is usually his best track.

Bottas looked significantly quicker than Hamilton in Japan to me.

The first stint was the only stint where they were on equal tyres, and Bottas was clearly quicker than Hamilton in this stint.

Hamilton didn’t even get in Vettel’s DRS until lap 15, by that lap Bottas had already established a very firm lead.

In the first 10 laps of the race, Vettel was easily keeping Hamilton at bay. The gap between them was constantly over 2 seconds. Meanwhile Bottas was building a lead over Vettel out front.

Bottas won Suzuka by being the faster driver.

You can't pass at Suzuka, 2 seconds is the kind of gap you'd want to keep if you had in mind to look after your tyres for a 1 stop strategy which seemed to be on the cards until Mercedes decided to botch Hamilton's strategy and race. So your evidence of Bottas being quicker is merely Hamilton being held up behind Vettel, that's not convincing at all.

pokerman wrote:

KingVoid wrote:

Johnson wrote:Hamilton could have done better and collected an easy P2 in Italy yes, but he was racing only to win. Just like Brazil, again he could have collected another easy P2 there too. But he had the title essentially wrapped up so he was only interested in race wins especially if Bottas was behind him and not going to win himself.

I never said Hamilton did an incredible job to keep up with Leclerc.

I am just objectively analysing the race weekend and specifically Bottas. He looked ok that race but Hamilton was in traffic all race. So its hard to actually analyse eithers performance. So I was incorrect in saying that Bottas was a distant 3rd all race.

Whether Ferrari cheated or not isn't my point, my point is Hamilton was up top fighting for every race win and Bottas was fighting for 4th-5th in many of those races. Brazil, Singapore, Mexico and Russia.

Bottas did win 2 races but even that took a kind of perfect storm;

Japan, he needed a perfect start to go 3rd to 1st and Hamilton to be held up by Vettel the entire first stint and then for Mercedes to not allow Hamilton to stop one less time. Japan is also Hamiltons weakest track in qualifying. Lost 3-1 to Rosberg and it was the only track Button out qualified him on, losing 2-1.

USA, he did well in both qualifying and the race. But Hamilton had an issue on his first run with his brake balance switch moving all through his lap and then on his 2nd run the track was slower and Hamilton had to push harder to find the time.

I am not taking anything away from Bottas, he won 2 races fair and square but it took a big combination of factors to win those and those are the only 2 races and maybe Italy he was ever in the hunt to win. Bottas also had a bad race in Russia which is usually his best track.

Bottas looked significantly quicker than Hamilton in Japan to me.

The first stint was the only stint where they were on equal tyres, and Bottas was clearly quicker than Hamilton in this stint.

Hamilton didn’t even get in Vettel’s DRS until lap 15, by that lap Bottas had already established a very firm lead.

In the first 10 laps of the race, Vettel was easily keeping Hamilton at bay. The gap between them was constantly over 2 seconds. Meanwhile Bottas was building a lead over Vettel out front.

Bottas won Suzuka by being the faster driver.

You can't pass at Suzuka, 2 seconds is the kind of gap you'd want to keep if you had in mind to look after your tyres for a 1 stop strategy which seemed to be on the cards until Mercedes decided to botch Hamilton's strategy and race. So your evidence of Bottas being quicker is merely Hamilton being held up behind Vettel, that's not convincing at all.

I remember Hamilton being all over Bottas like a rash in Silverstone in the opening stint (when he was quicker), and yet he still kept his tyres in better shape.

In Japan, Hamilton basically made zero impression on Vettel in the opening stint while Bottas was dominating out front.

It’s quite different from USA, where I felt that Hamilton had at least equal pace to Bottas in the first stint but was genuinely held up by Verstappen.

KingVoid wrote:

pokerman wrote:

KingVoid wrote:

Johnson wrote:Hamilton could have done better and collected an easy P2 in Italy yes, but he was racing only to win. Just like Brazil, again he could have collected another easy P2 there too. But he had the title essentially wrapped up so he was only interested in race wins especially if Bottas was behind him and not going to win himself.

I never said Hamilton did an incredible job to keep up with Leclerc.

I am just objectively analysing the race weekend and specifically Bottas. He looked ok that race but Hamilton was in traffic all race. So its hard to actually analyse eithers performance. So I was incorrect in saying that Bottas was a distant 3rd all race.

Whether Ferrari cheated or not isn't my point, my point is Hamilton was up top fighting for every race win and Bottas was fighting for 4th-5th in many of those races. Brazil, Singapore, Mexico and Russia.

Bottas did win 2 races but even that took a kind of perfect storm;

Japan, he needed a perfect start to go 3rd to 1st and Hamilton to be held up by Vettel the entire first stint and then for Mercedes to not allow Hamilton to stop one less time. Japan is also Hamiltons weakest track in qualifying. Lost 3-1 to Rosberg and it was the only track Button out qualified him on, losing 2-1.

USA, he did well in both qualifying and the race. But Hamilton had an issue on his first run with his brake balance switch moving all through his lap and then on his 2nd run the track was slower and Hamilton had to push harder to find the time.

I am not taking anything away from Bottas, he won 2 races fair and square but it took a big combination of factors to win those and those are the only 2 races and maybe Italy he was ever in the hunt to win. Bottas also had a bad race in Russia which is usually his best track.

Bottas looked significantly quicker than Hamilton in Japan to me.

The first stint was the only stint where they were on equal tyres, and Bottas was clearly quicker than Hamilton in this stint.

Hamilton didn’t even get in Vettel’s DRS until lap 15, by that lap Bottas had already established a very firm lead.

In the first 10 laps of the race, Vettel was easily keeping Hamilton at bay. The gap between them was constantly over 2 seconds. Meanwhile Bottas was building a lead over Vettel out front.

Bottas won Suzuka by being the faster driver.

You can't pass at Suzuka, 2 seconds is the kind of gap you'd want to keep if you had in mind to look after your tyres for a 1 stop strategy which seemed to be on the cards until Mercedes decided to botch Hamilton's strategy and race. So your evidence of Bottas being quicker is merely Hamilton being held up behind Vettel, that's not convincing at all.

I remember Hamilton being all over Bottas like a rash in Silverstone in the opening stint (when he was quicker), and yet he still kept his tyres in better shape.

In Japan, Hamilton basically made zero impression on Vettel in the opening stint while Bottas was dominating out front.

It’s quite different from USA, where I felt that Hamilton had at least equal pace to Bottas in the first stint but was genuinely held up by Verstappen.

Hamilton pitted late in the race with 10 laps to go and was close to 2 seconds quicker than Vettel but despite being in DRS range for the last 7 laps was unable to pass Vettel, which highlights what a pointless exercise it would have been for Hamilton to try and pass Vettel in the first stint.

The overtaking delta in Japan is obviously massive and can't really be compared to somewhere like Silverstone were we actually did see front running cars pass one another.

I don't think you can specify one driver being quicker than another driver when that driver is stuck behind another driver, also given the passing delta it's debatable that Bottas would have been able to pass Hamilton late in the race given Hamilton was unable to pass Vettel on much fresher tyres.

It was a race were basically once Bottas had built a small gap it was bequeathed then that he should win the race given the terrible strategy given to Hamilton, also quite amusing given the lap dog label given to Bottas by some, such things would never have happened on either Schumacher's or Alonso's watch in respect to their #2 drivers.

So far, I'd say Hamilton's opening phase of the 2020 season has been stronger than his 2018 and 2017 campaigns and also slightly better than his 2019 campaign. In 2019, I don't think Hamilton hit the purple patches he hit in 2017 and 2018 but he was slightly more consistent and balanced in his performance throughout the whole season in the races. 2020 is looking at least as strong or stronger and at this stage his season has already had two standout performances, with a legendary pole lap at the Styrian GP and a near flawless race performance in the Spanish GP.

Will Hamilton's form continue?

Invade wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 19, 2020 5:24 am

So far, I'd say Hamilton's opening phase of the 2020 season has been stronger than his 2018 and 2017 campaigns and also slightly better than his 2019 campaign. In 2019, I don't think Hamilton hit the purple patches he hit in 2017 and 2018 but he was slightly more consistent and balanced in his performance throughout the whole season in the races. 2020 is looking at least as strong or stronger and at this stage his season has already had two standout performances, with a legendary pole lap at the Styrian GP and a near flawless race performance in the Spanish GP.

Will Hamilton's form continue?

If he can keep the 50% win rate going this season and next season then he has all the major records, so far with 4 wins in 6 races he's batting above that so it' a great start.

Let's not also forget the 4 pole positions that keeps him on course for 100 poles as well as the 100 race wins that would be achievable next year, bag that with 8 titles and he could retire although I know he won't.

Invade wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 19, 2020 5:24 am

So far, I'd say Hamilton's opening phase of the 2020 season has been stronger than his 2018 and 2017 campaigns and also slightly better than his 2019 campaign. In 2019, I don't think Hamilton hit the purple patches he hit in 2017 and 2018 but he was slightly more consistent and balanced in his performance throughout the whole season in the races. 2020 is looking at least as strong or stronger and at this stage his season has already had two standout performances, with a legendary pole lap at the Styrian GP and a near flawless race performance in the Spanish GP.

Will Hamilton's form continue?

He's done like a gazillion laps round Barcelona. As soon as Verstappen passed Bottas at the start all he had to do was cruise round... pretty much any pro driver could have done that

Zazu wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 19, 2020 4:11 pm

He's done like a gazillion laps round Barcelona. As soon as Verstappen passed Bottas at the start all he had to do was cruise round... pretty much any pro driver could have done that

Cruise around faster than Verstappen. I'd say 99% of pro drivers would struggle to do that, to be honest.

Zazu wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 19, 2020 4:11 pm

He's done like a gazillion laps round Barcelona. As soon as Verstappen passed Bottas at the start all he had to do was cruise round... pretty much any pro driver could have done that

Nah.

Read Mark Hughes' race report and what he heard from inside the Mercedes team. After all, Hughes does tend to write very sober appraisals of performance which reflect the actual perception within the paddock.

pokerman wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 19, 2020 3:44 pm

If he can keep the 50% win rate going this season and next season then he has all the major records, so far with 4 wins in 6 races he's batting above that so it' a great start.

Let's not also forget the 4 pole positions that keeps him on course for 100 poles as well as the 100 race wins that would be achievable next year, bag that with 8 titles and he could retire although I know he won't.

Lewis probably will be at about 50% for 2020-2021, so at this stage it looks like he'll reach your suggested numbers and be the sole record holder for WDCs. But I'm curious about what spanners the FIA will try to throw into the works here and how adversely it could affect the team.


Also, I do find it strange that there hasn't even been any real reported discussions about a new contract. There appears to be some uncertainty over the future of both Toto and Lewis and it gets curiouser and curiouser by the week. What's cookin'?

pokerman wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 19, 2020 3:44 pm

If he can keep the 50% win rate going this season and next season then he has all the major records, so far with 4 wins in 6 races he's batting above that so it' a great start.

Let's not also forget the 4 pole positions that keeps him on course for 100 poles as well as the 100 race wins that would be achievable next year, bag that with 8 titles and he could retire although I know he won't.

How many podiums do you reckon Mr.Hamilton will end up with?

I reckon ~220. Retiring after 3 years of the new regs.