Vettel has done better job yes, which also makes him a nr1 driver. I really don’t understand why is it so difficult for you to admit it. If Vettel is not a number 1 driver, I would like to know how would you describe a nr1 driver?
Even in 2016 when Kimi was qualifying infront of Seb, more often than not he got very questionable strategies (Mexico for example). How much btw was Kimi’s contract? A hell of a lot less than Seb’s, so he is quite cheap tbh.
Anyhow, I hope you are right - that if Kimi performs well he is allowed to finish ahead of Seb.
And yes I agree, this topic will be painful because it gets old really fast to read posts about how Kimi should be fired - first ones will pop up during this weekend, I think
Kimi's contract is anything but cheap. And no, Kimi wasn't getting 'strange' strategies meant to hurt him. Ferrari is just not great with strategy quite often, unfortunately. Also, strategies aren't just gifts. Drivers need to make them work.
Ferrari always use no.1 drivers, don't they? Do you really think they would favor Kimi as they do Vet? Pay aside and age and last years results and so on? Smells like Kimi's no.2 all over the place...
Clearly they could have a better driver in the seat, one that could do a better job towards the WCC, and cheaper too, honestly why they hadn't done it still intrigues me.
Anyway, wolud love to see Kimi retire after this season, hopefully with a win or at least a strong last year, he deserves it.
No, Ferrari haven't had a default no.1 driver since Schumacher. 'Default' being the key word. Obviously at some stage of a season, one driver may start to get preferential treatment if the other driver is basically out of contention, but this is very different from a 'default' no.1 driver situation, which would mean a driver gets preferential treatment from the get-go.
Kimi and Massa is a great example of this. Kimi was probably expected to come into the team and be the new team leader/no.1 guy - the replacement for Schumacher. And he did benefit from no.1 prioritization by the end of 2007 when Massa fell out of contention. But in 2008, the situation reversed. Massa had the better season and Ferrari then gave *him* no.1 treatment by the end as Kimi was basically out of the running.
It's really that simple. Ferrari aren't working against Kimi. Kimi is a hugely popular driver and I doubt Ferrari would be displeased at all if he was the one beating out Vettel more often than not. There also isn't a more team-orientated team on the grid. They aren't there to prop up drivers. At Ferrari, you drive *for Ferrari*.