No ****ing kidding. Two people in two brand new teams with uncomfortable seats because the seat makers aren't used to their dimensions/frame. Seats which have to be molded, custom made, and trimmed to perfectly fit a driver and make sure they're strapped comfortably for 300km.

And you're telling me these new guys in these new teams just might not have found that 'comfort' zone with the seats and thus they're doomed to #2 status or whatever? Man, I'm impressed. People will take the tiniest bit of insignificant crumbs and make it seem a bigger deal than it is to push whatever agenda they have. There's a reason it's called "testing" and not "grand prix weekend".

Nice spin. Rosberg's seat dropped AS he was driving throughout the day. Jenson was way too high in the car from the very start. A McLaren employee likely tried to hinder his continual rise at the team. I'm glad it didn't work though

maybe anthony got hold of the CAD drawings

Get in there son!! let the exposing begin

Pretty much my take on it too.

If only - once the season starts and one of these gets beaten by the other - we could all join together here and say the best man won fair and square...if only

Well they have finally driven the same car, new to both of them, on the same circuit, in similar conditions, for a day each.

Hmm, what do you think Timba will do if Lewis beats Button?

And, of course there's plenty others who follow the same m.o.

Lame. You continue to proclaim that Jenson is going to kick Lewis's arse. Yet we know if Lewis beats Jenson during the season you'll never admit he was fairly beaten.

It's so predictable.

Here's a cast iron prediction.

1. If at the end of the season Lewis beats Button, Timba will find some rationalization why things were somehow stacked against Jenson, thus explaining how Timba's predictions of Jenson dominating were wrong wrong wrong.
2. If Jenson beats Lewis, I will personally do what Timba would never do - admit that Jenson fairly beat Lewis.

No doubt the onus is on Hamilton to beat his new teammate. Should he do so, and McLaren provide a fair platform for Jense to be competitive, I'd give him full credit.

It's more likely Lewis will be the one who fails to deliver though

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_suicide

Don't for one moment believe you. In fact, my guess is even when pointed towards this post you will weasel that Mclaren did not "provide a fair platform".

If however you do, you'll probably regain respect from a lot here, myself included. But we'll see. I don't expect you to change your spots.

well who cares about an Internet Trolling Kid, ..........just enjoy the racing ;)

Let the discussion of other posters end now. If you wish to complain, use the report function or PM one of the mods.

Formula1.com website has a great videos section showing the onboard quali laps of each of 2009's pole sitters. There are of course 4 Jenson vids for each of his poles. Watch those. Then watch each of Lewis' 3 vids. Very interesting comparison.

Slight difference, Lewis was still beating his teammate

Sounds like your defeated before you even start

Reading timba's posts, it's no wonder people here start disliking Button.

What difference?

Barichello finished in front of Jenson 5 times after Britain. The other 5 races Jenson was in front. Do I need to point out who was driving with media and WDC pressure on their shoulders? Or which driver was favored by questionable team updates? Jenson simply outclassed Rubens in some races like Germany, Brazil or others. Brilliant efforts to come back from a qualifying disadvantage yet still finish in front. I expect Jense to show more of the same this year, with his trademark silky smooth style making the difference.

If Button is going to get the better of Hamilton I very much doubt it is going happen this year. A good supporting role scoring more than 80% of Hamilton's point would be a good debut season for Jenson at Mclaren.

In less than 4 weeks, you either be viewed as a sage, or a complete tool, in regards to your prediction of the Hamilton vs Button battle.

I'm sure they'll be no media or reigning world champion pressure this year.

If Jense can't handle the pressure very well, then he's in big trouble this year.

You want to go over the races Lewis cracked with WDC pressure? The mistakes made?

Both drivers have had their mistakes under pressure, but so did Alonso and even Schumacher.

I'm not saying Jenson cracked with pressure, only that Timba used pressure as an excuse for Jense not performing his best against Rubens. I would say that once the flag drops on 2010 Jenson will see more pressure on him than he did last year, as Lewis is a superior driver to Rubens. IMO of course.

No need to nitpick or put words in people's mouths.

Someone suggested Jenson wasn't beating his teammate at some point last year. Which isn't true. They were drawn 5-5 after Britain.

What amazes me is how people continually ignore the score before that.

But you must admit that Jenson was merely the equal of Rubens in the second half of the 2009 season. If as you suggest his domination diminshed due to pressure then why would he not struggle under similar conditions in 2010?

He won't have the same pressure because now he won't be fighthing for his first WDC.

It's not similar conditions at all. He's a world champion now and that changes things. Until next year we won't know whether that change is positive or negative will we?

For the 2nd time, that was never suggested. I commented on the media pressure issue as a compliment to Jenson's performance. Remember the amount of pundits saying Jense was 2nd rate and only counted on a 'dominant' car? I do. There are still people, in this thread included, hating with such accusations. Despite all of it, Jense came through and delivered a WDC in his first oppurtunity. That deserves plaudits, not hate.

The pressure is always more with your first win, championship etc.

The pressures will be magnified now - IMHO.

If, as expected, he is thrashed by Lewis his stock, which is already low, will sink even lower and his WDC will have a bold asterix next to it with the footnote; Brawn stole a march on the rest of the field and Jenson barely beat a aging Ruebens.

I could of course be wrong...

The championship is his to lose - he is going to start the year with the most pressure. He is in a hostile environment if you ask me - McLaren is Lewisville. I don't give Button much of a chance at all. No offense.

His to lose eh! So your expecting the Mac to be the dominant car then.

in terms of pressure, it will be reduced in a way because he has already fulfilled a lifelong ambition and won the WDC... in the other way, it will be increased...his reputation is on the line and its crunch time in terms of what his lasting legacy will be. Get destroyed by Lewis and people will forever use Button as an example of how its about the car not the driver... match Lewis or beat him and he is regarded as a top top driver that deserves his WDC.

lets see how it goes

I disagree, last year he went from virtually being left off the grid to having the best car by a mile. There was no pressure at the start of the season, they were just glad to be there. He built a massive lead in the championship easily and then appeared to cruise. This year he has everything to prove, strong car out of the gate, WDC team mate, defense of his own WDC, plus the british media on the british team mates and team angle. IMO a lot more pressure from the start.

I think the pressure is all on Lewis. Button knows that no-one (or very few except timba and the like) expects him to beat Lewis, so there is really no pressure on him at all. He has his WDC, and he can just drive with ease and enjoy himself. Lewis knows if he loses to Button, his stock will drop dramatically as Button is still not rated up with the big boys.

If Lewis can handle the pressure, we will see his usual brilliant driving. If the pressure gets to him, mistakes could be made. I hope for the former of course, but time will tell.

One thing that does annoy me though is the constant reference to Lewis chewing up his tyres. He hasn't done that since 2007; most drivers' rookie mistakes are allowed to pass, whereas Lewis' get mentioned again and again.

At the start of the season there was indeed no pressure, but after some races it started to kick in that this was his year that he waited and worked more then 20 years for. He couldn't afford failing from that point. I believe that created the pressure and perhaps was already noticeble at Silverstone. He appeared to cruise but ofcourse he didn't.

And like Grenada mentions, there aren't really that many people who predict Button will even keep up with Hamillton.

And my original point was that when the pressure built up, Jenson no longer appeared dominant especially against his team mate. If this was indeed a result of the pressure then I think Jenson is going to have to figure out a way to deal with it because that pressure will be even greater this year or at least on par. IMO of course.

Agreed. One of Lewis' greatest strengths is his ability to adapt, as he showed in 2009.

Personally I do think all the pressure is on Hamilton, but I think he will deal with it. If he can steal a march in the opening 4 or so rounds he can relax a bit and get back to his normal self, it's just that he has to beat Button early on to get the psychological edge.

Very true.

Well yeah for sure, if the pressure will be the same, he will have to figure out a way to deal with it. I agree on that, but I just doubt the pressure will be that high. It might become high if the start of the season goes wrong for him, but for that we'll just have to wait and see.

Weird anyway that last year that pressure, if there was any, only affected him in qualy really. In most races he kept the dominance.

Agreed on the wait and see.

I think if the Mac is dominant then the spotlight on Jenson and Lewis will obviously intensify along with the pressure, if they're chasing Ferrari or someone else then the pressure will be more focussed on the team rather than the individual drivers.

I think there is a lot of pressure on Hmailton this year - he needs to beat Button and he really needs to win the championship to keep his "legend" alive - if he gets beaten by Schumi or Alonso you can imagine what people will be saying about Hamilton...

you keep writing this same thing... firstly there is no big "legend"..."legend in the making" hype? perhaps

If he gets beat by Fred or Schu, nothing will happen....he would have been by some of the best ever.. If the Ferrari or Mercedes is much faster, there is nothin he can do against such calibre of drivers. and the public understands that.... just like his stock didnt drop after 09.


You are right about the Button part though....from what I can tell, Lewis seems very relaxed about the situation so far...like he knows deep down he can handle Button.


The myth about how Lewis chews tires than anyone else will be finally laid to rest this year I reckon. I dont expect him to be totally as smooth as Button but I reckon his overall speed will compensate and Buttons tire conservation advantage in reality wont count for much.

When I watch the onboard pole laps on formula1.com, I don't see this "smoothness" from Button. I see Lewis on the edge more in those videos, but you would not watch Jensen and think "smooth driving". I think it's a bit of self-sustaining myth.

It's a well known characteristic of his, backed up by multiple insiders like Brundle or his old team boss:

"He is such a smooth driver it is incredible." - Ross Brawn.

Jenson will flourish under the new regs.

I was at the test in Monza in the hotly contested 2004 season as a guest of Honda. We spent quite some time out at the Ascari chicane and every time a car went through you could obviously hear the traction control cutting in, except on the Honda. It was noticeable enough that when we went back to the paddock and managed to get five minutes with the head of the test team we asked what Honda were doing differently with their TC. His response was simple: "it's not the car it's Jenson, the TC doesnt cut in there because it's not needed". The comparison was made with Taku who was on the TC heavily through the corner.

If Jenson's smoothness is a myth, it's clearly one that comes from within F1 - not just from armchair fans like us.

I agree that in the onboards the BGP looks a bit of a handful THROUGH the corners, but if you compare exits, Jenson's exits from the corner look smoother.

I don't mind either way - I think both Lewis and Button are legends - but for different reasons. I do think Jenson's underrated though!

I dont "keep writing it" - I put it in the LH thread yesterday - as to the "legend in the making hype" bit - that is exactly my point....

good post. I think their differing styles are quite noticable from on board footage over the years

ITT: People projecting their own mental weaknesses and fears on to their heroes.