71 replies to this topic

[Dunc]

Just for fun, while we all get through our leftovers in the Crimbo Limbo, who are your favourite five drivers and why? Let's make two lists, one for all-time faves since you started watching F1 and one of the current grid. No judgement , just an honest expression of opinions.

 

All time

 

Damon Hill - He was the British driver who was winning everything in the first full season I watched (1993) and I really came to like his personality. I loved his battles with Schumi and got up at 4am to watch him win the WDC in 1996. My dad was a fan of Graham Hill in the 1960s so I guess there was some family bonding there too. I admire him even more since reading his autobiography and finding out about his mental health struggles and how he's overcome them.

 

Jean Alesi - I loved his aggressive driving and the fact he always put his heart before his head though it didn't really work out for him career-wise. One of F1's great 'what-ifs' is how he would have handled the FW14 had he opted for Williams in 1991, I think the history of 1990s F1 would have been very different.

 

Juan Pablo Montoya - Similar to Alesi, I loved his aggressive driving and how outspoken he was. He was such a character and I was really gutted when he didn't beat Schumi in 2003.

 

Kamui Kobayashi - Again, he was such a great character and had an entertaining, aggressive driving style. I was so pleased that he managed to get a podium in Japan in 2012 and was disappointed he couldn't continue his F1 career beyond then though he has had an amazing level of success in WEC.

 

Jenson Button - His 2009 season was the stuff of legends from almost being out of the sport to becoming WDC in a year. I loved how he matured from a playboy into a team leader and deserving champion. His subsequent time with McLaren - especially in 2011 - showed just how talented he was and it was such a shame he never had a car to showcase his abilities after 2012.

 

Current

 

Lewis Hamilton - He's just such a good driver! The man everyone else on the grid wants to beat. The last two seasons have been a bit dull but have demonstrated just how good he is. What I really admire is that his 2008, 2014, 2017 and 2018 titles were all won in the face of talented and determined opponents with some really exciting races. I also admire other aspects of his career like how he helped McLaren rebuild in 2009, rebounded from a poor 2011 in 2012 and then had the foresight to move to Mercedes in 2013. Some of his political posturing has become a bit annoying of late but it doesn't detract from how much I like watching him.

 

Sergio Perez - I love his driving style and how he has gotten so much out of so many poor cars. I was really pleased when he won his first race this year and even more pleased when he signed for Red Bull - it will be great to see what he can do with a competitive car.

 

Lando Norris - He's what F1 has needed for a long time. A breath of fresh air in a fairly stilted grid and clearly has the talent to do well in the sport, which I hope he delivers on.

 

Carlos Sainz - Seems to be a genuinely nice individual and someone who I think could be this era's Jenson Button, a really underrated driver who might take a long time to get the opportunity he clearly deserves.

 

George Russell - Also clearly incredibly talented and I love the way he wears his heart on his sleeve. Also someone who needs to get the kind of car to really show what he's capable of.

Edited by Dunc, 31 December 2020 - 11:33.

[Lerdes]

ALL time (since started watching in 1993) personal favorites

Ayrton Senna
Heinz Harald Frentzen
Jenson Button
Fernando Alonso
Kamui Kobayashi

Current grid 2020

Carlos Sainz
Daniel Ricciardo
George Russell
Lando Norris
Kevin Magnussen

[Branislav]

Alonso

Max Verstappen

Montoya

Keselowski

Loeb

[w1Y]

Not driving anymore
Mansell
Senna
Hill
Montoya
Albon

Current Drivers
Hamilton
Norris
Sainz
Ricciardo
Vettel

[masa90]

I will list the f1, been watching live from 98-99 so stuff before that I will have to pass sadly because it feels "wrong" because not see everything live.

 

All time:

 

Kimi. Amazing sportsmanship, great longevity. At his peak he was absolute beast. So entertaining. Still pretty good and love watching and supporting him.

 

MSC. To me the best of all time. Just amazing all over. Even his comeback wasnt as bad as it seemed, apart from end of 2012 when all just seemed to fall apart.

 

Mika Häkkinen. As a Ferrari fan he seemed to be the one to fear. Weird that I did not pick him to be my favourite as I am Finnish myself. But, I believe for a while to be the fastest and most exciting driver. Only later I have fully understood his significance to Finnish f1.

 

Rosberg. Nico was a great f1 driver. Really dragged some bad cars to good results. Was so happy to see him get the title, shame that he retired so young but still respect his decision.

 

 

Current:

 

Kimi. Listed above. Still good enough to properly compete at his age. Impressive!

 

Bottas. I feel much better than given credit for. Needs to get his head together, level of performance varies too much when even smallest struggle hits.

 

Sainz. I somehow really like him. Clean racer, great racecraft. Lets see how he goes against #16!

 

Ricciardo. Slightly crazy, always gives his all and seems to drive with oldskool "ballsy" way.

 

Few drivers I rooted for in the past: Kubica, he was really exciting and hard racer!, JPM -> more speed and aggression than sense, but man he was exciting to watch.

 

 

Outside of f1 are few of my other biggest motorsport heros.

 

Juha Kankkunen. Just amazing, the best driver of his era in my opinion. Closely edges ahead Sainz sr.

 

Tommi Mäkinen. Tommi and Mitsubishi -> amazing combo. Fast on every surface.

 

Colin McRae. Just crazy. Crazy fast, crazy style with lots of close calls and huge crashes.

 

I really also liked Auriol, Grönholm and Sainz. So 90s rallying was great for me hah with great battles and multiple winners!

[messy]

All-time

Giancarlo Fisichella
I know, I know. Hugely flawed, but in terms of natural, God-given talent in the late 1990s he was right up there with Mika and Michael in my view. The fact he was also a flaky, inconsistent driver with confidence issues and an inability to handle pressure ensured that he’d never end up at the top table but it was fun watching him occasionally stick a Jordan or a Benetton up on the second row and I felt following him like I was ‘in on a secret’ or something, that this guy would explode into immediate title contention when he finally got a car worthy of his talents. Rather than, you know, being half a second slower than Fernando Alonso plodding round taking occasional podiums for two years n’stuff.

Heinz Harald Frentzen
I could probably cut and paste most of the stuff I said about Fisichella here to be honest. They were quite similar, weren’t they. Frentzen maybe less likely to put a midfield car third on the grid from nowhere but showcasing the all-round ability to be a proper World Championship standard F1 driver if the wind was blowing in the right direction, every blade of grass was the correct height and the track exactly the right temperature.

Michael Schumacher
The master, I loved him for his feisty brilliance in the days before Ferrari were dominant, his mind over matter charges to take on the might of Adrian Newey’s creations all by himself. 1997 and 1998 were my favourite memories of him, like he was on a one-man mission to turn drab Williams/McLaren demonstration runs into something stirring and exciting. I remember watching qualifying over and over, seeing him catch the back end, kick up dirt on the exit, his hands a blur at the steering wheel as he took the fight - and even if he ended up third behind them, I could never end a qualifying session without applauding him. Even my dad, who basically had no interest in F1 but did his best to humor me and share my interest in it, used to say that Schumacher was the only driver who you could visibly see doing something special in the car. He inspired me, I loved his ambition and drive, his intensity. It all got a bit less stirring after 2000, though.

Kimi Raikkonen
As someone who’d often be completely happy with my own company and would rather sandpaper my knees than socialise unless I actually want to, I like Kimi’s monosyllabic coolness and comfort in his own skin. I like that he doesn’t give a sh*t and he’d rather get drunk and smoke a fag than post pictures of himself training on Instagram. He’s a throwback, but still doing the business, still professional and still going strong at what, 41, so go figure. I loved that when he came in he was all seat of the pants speed and bravery, his 2005 with McLaren is one of my favourite all-time season-long performances, then he went off and did pretty decent in rallying before returning. Since he came back I loved his dark horse status in the Lotus, his relentless pulling himself up into podium positions, and I while found his second spell at Ferrari disappointing, I found it pretty inspiring that he saved his best season in Ferrari 2.0 for last, and his Indian summer that season and win in the US GP. I loved that while I was watching him cross the line there almost with a tear in my eye, he got out the car and was like “yes, good result, I am quite happy”.

Fernando Alonso
This could have been any number of drivers - Mark Webber, Daniel Ricciardo, Mika Hakkinen, Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button. I almost made it Jenson to be honest because I enjoyed following his story through from 2000. He was the first driver whose entire career I followed. But it’s got to be Alonso because for every time I went into a season with this nasty feeling that a certain driver was about to dominate and it’d all be really dull - Schumacher in 2005, Vettel in 2012, he was cast as the guy who went against that and single handedly made things spicy. His efforts in the Ferrari 2010-14 were maybe the closest I’ve seen to late nineties Schumacher and I’ve always greatly admired that. To be honest, his later years with McLaren I thought were overrated. Every season Autosport used to rank him in their top five even though Jenson Button often edged him, he spent so much time moaning and used to admit himself that he was in ‘economy mode’, so the fascination everyone had with his later career never quite translated for me. But I really hope we see him back at the front with Alpine.

Current -

Hamilton, Verstappen, Leclerc, Gasly, Sainz...

Non-F1 -

Jimmy Vasser
Richard Burns
Colin McRae
Greg Moore
Jean-Èric Vergne

Edited by messy, 29 December 2020 - 23:32.

[juicy sushi]

All time:
Alex Zanardi
Noriyuki Haga
Juan Montoya
Valentino Rossi
Justin Wilson

Right now:
Colton Herta
Josef Newgarden
Alex Palou
Nick Cassidy
Sam Bird

Edited by juicy sushi, 30 December 2020 - 00:31.

[Atreiu]

All time that I have actually watched: Senna, Hakkinen, Hamilton, McLaren Kimi and Berger.

Currently in activity: Hamilton, Ricciardo, Sainz, Norris and Vettel.

 

Bonus round: Hayden, Stoner, Marc Marquez, Franco Morbidelli and Brad Binder

Extra bonus: MP4/5B, MP4/15, MP4/17D, MP4/25 and RB6.

 

Double whammy, circuits for cars: Suzuka, Spa, 1990 Silverstone, 1991 Hockenheim and Singapore.

Bike circuits: 2005 Assen, 2012 Assen, Phillip Island, Mugello and Motorland Aragon.

Edited by Atreiu, 30 December 2020 - 00:03.

[shure]

Hmm, this is tougher than I thought it would be.

 

All time:

 

Piquet (senior, of course)

The driver who got me hooked on F1.  I loved his flamboyant attitude, his fondness for pranks but above all his speed and car control were something amazing to a young teenager.  I still rate his pass on Senna at the `Hungaroring in 1986 as the best overtake I've ever seen.  Absolutely mesmerising driver with an immense talent

 

Senna

if Piquet was mesmerising, Senna was other-worldly.  There was just something about him that screamed "magic" whenever he was in the car.  I feel privileged to have been fortunate to watch the clear GOAT (for me) ply his craft.

 

Schumacher

Not sure if I should include him as I never really warmed to him enough to be able to say I liked him, but he was an absolute giant of his time and someone whose name became synonymous with driving excellence.  He made a huge impression on me as someone who was, like Senna, head and shoulders above his peers.  His skill was huge.

 

Kimi

Bit of an outlier here as where the others were clearly the cream of the crop Kimi was/is very much a one trick pony.  But while at McLaren and with the benefit of the Michelins he really did look like the fastest man on earth for a good while.  I could take or leave his Iceman personality and  where some thought he was cool I often found him to be simply rude, but I could forgive him much when I saw him hustle his McLaren around  the track.  Somehow I feel he deserved a title for his McLaren drives more than he did for the one he actually got at Ferrari

 

Alonso

Another one I didn't really like initially and I found his personality extremely flawed and ugly, no more so than during the whole 2007 controversy.  But I've warmed to him over time and for me he's the driver who has carried the torch lit by Senna and Schumacher into the present day.  His skill is second to none and I have to say I'm very excited at the prospect of the greatest driver still driving coming back to F1.  It's a crime that he hasn't had the equipment to give him the titles his talent deserves.

 

Teams:

That's easy.  McLaren all the way.  I supported Senna, then Hakkinen and Kimi, the latter two initially because they drove for McLaren.  When Kimi left for Ferrari he took my support with him and although I still rooted for McLaren overall I never really warmed to their drivers after that, with the exception of maybe Button.  They are no longer the same now that RD has left but I still have a soft spot for them and nothing would give me greater F1 pleasure than to see them winning again.  Shame Alonso didn't come back to them this year but can't have it all I guess.

 

Present day:

Well, if I can stretch present day to include the season that hasn't started yet, then my list would start with Alonso.  Looking forward to see  what he can do, although I'm also a little nervous at the age/absence combo.  But if any driver can do it, he can

 

The rest are a little more difficult.  In no particular order:

 

Max

Clearly the first great driver of the new generation and another one who you just know has rung the neck of the car he drives.  I hope RB can give him a car worthy of his talent

 

Leclerc

Again, personality leaves me a little cold but there's no denying the kid has speed.  Really excited at the thought of future battles between him and Max in the style of Prost and Senna!

 

Vettel

Not the top driver I thought he was but still very, very quick and capable.  And possibly the most genuine and nicest driver in the paddock

 

Struggling a bit now but really hoping the McLaren drivers can pull something out of the hat and  bring some glory back to the team.  If so they might worm their way into my affections!  Otherwise I don't really see any of the drivers as a favourite 

[Boxerevo]

F1: Senna, Hakkinen, Montoya, Hamilton, Ricciardo.

Motogp: Schwantz, Doohan, Stoner, Lorenzo, Marquez. 

 

Really heart-liked those in negrite.

[JHSingo]

F1 all time:

 

Michael Schumacher - Growing up in the mid-to-late 90s and early 2000s, it was hard for me to not be a Schumacher fan. My dad was a massive Ferrari fan, so Schumacher was the guy I cheered for most of all. I still remember being sat on my dad's knee and him cheering loudly when Michael came out of the pits ahead of Mika at Suzuka 2000. He was a sort of superhero-esque figure to me in those days, and even as I got older, he was still my guy.

 

Juan Pablo Montoya - All that being said, even I sometimes got bored at the ease in which Schumacher would sometimes win. All good superheroes need a strong rival (I'm not going to describe him as a villain ). So, I loved Schumi's all-too-brief rivalry with Montoya. I suppose I liked Montoya first of all for his name - it just sounded so cool and exotic to say! As an added bonus, he was also really exciting to watch, and quite a character out of the car as well. F1 lost a lot of colour when Montoya departed, we never truly got to see his best I believe. It has still been fun to root for him in subsequent years, particularly when he was back in IndyCar. I was never that bothered about his NASCAR stint, in my opinion his rightful place was in an open wheel car.

 

Fernando Alonso - I suppose initially, I wasn't much of a fan of Fernando's, primarily because he was Schumacher's main rival in later years, and it made logical sense to root against him. But after 2006, I developed more and more appreciation for his ability, and got increasing frustrated with how it was seemingly being wasted in sub-standard cars. It's a real pity he never won a title with Ferrari, and whilst it seems unlikely that he'll get a chance to win another title at Renault Alpine, I'll be interested to see how he does next year. He also gets bonus points in my eyes for stepping outside his comfort zone, and trying things like Indy and Le Mans. I've always enjoyed the stories of F1 drivers from bygone eras who would do that type of thing a lot more regularly, and it was just really interesting to him be the first guy in a long time to being so open to trying different disciplines. 

 

Jean Alesi - I sort of have hazy memories of his time driving for Ferrari, I was very young at the time. But the Alesi/Ferrari combination has sort of become one of those iconic driver and team pairings in the sport's history. I binge on old YouTube clips of him driving one of those V12 Ferraris in customary style.

 

Felipe Massa - By the end, he'd probably been around for too long, and his last few years at Ferrari were pretty terrible. But I preferred Massa to Kimi when they were team mates at Ferrari, and was rooting for him in 2008 right till the end. It's a shame his accident the following year seemed to mark the end of Massa in his prime, but at least he still had his life.

 

For the last few years, there's not been anyone I've really cheered for in the same way as I did for those listed above. I've sympathised with Vettel's plight, but he's so often been the architect of his own downfall in recent years. It's nice to see Daniel Ricciardo do well, and I am increasingly enjoying watching Charles Leclerc's progression. He's probably my favourite right now, but I'd struggle to list many names after that.

 

Non-F1, all time:

Valentino Rossi (yep, throwing it open to two wheels as well) - what was true of Schumacher for F1 was equally true of Rossi in MotoGP. I was, and still am, a huge fan of Rossi. I'm hopeful that maybe we'll still get to see one or two more wins before he hangs up his helmet for good, and I still wish that he'd been able to win the 2015 title. I know it was partly his fault, but I'm still slightly bitter about how that all played out. Damn you, Marquez and Lorenzo!

 

Alex Zanardi - c'mon, how can you not include him here? Spectacular as anyone in his prime in CART, and a true motorsport hero for everything that's he's been through and continues to face.

 

Colin McRae - if there's one guy I think of, when I think of rallying, it's Colin. Loeb and Ogier may have far more titles, but I still hold McRae in higher regard. I loved his driving style, the ultimate definition of "win it, or bin it". There's not been many drivers like him, before or since.

 

Marcus Gronholm - McRae might be my #1 for rallying, but Gronholm was a guy I really liked rooting for as well. Perhaps nowhere near as spectacular as McRae, but still an enormously talented driver and genuinely likeable guy.

 

Tom Kristensen - Mr Le Mans. What more is there to say? It's a crime he never got a chance at F1, but at least we were treated to some truly special drives in sports car racing over many years instead.

Edited by JHSingo, 30 December 2020 - 00:56.

[MortenF1]

DC is my number one and that started for real in ‘97. In part because I took notice of him not spraying champagne after winning Monza that year, out of respect for princess Diana.
He’s a man with a heart, he’s smart, and he’s got humour.
Had a brief run-in with him in Monaco last year.
I was a proper fan of his and was in his corner daily right from signing up to Atlas forums in 2001 (as race addicted but changed the name a few years ago)
As has been said several times, on his special days he was unbeatable.

Lewis Hamilton. Thought he was a bit nose in the air back in 2006/7, but I quickly developed into a supporter just because his driving was crazily good and different. Will never forget how he always had a nice drift onto the s/f-straight in practice in Silverstone 2008.
The best driver ever? Probably. That he has capacity to delve into so many things away from F1 and still be the best driver is simply astonishing.

Kimi Räikkönen. Probably a bit misunderstood. Some parts of the media are miffed at him for not giving them enough time. Remember Imola in 2001 when the car lost power steering but he fought on. Brilliant.
He was the best one on Michelins, no doubt.

Mark Webber. I like him for his easy to observe traits; honesty and no bullshit. A cool guy. On his days the speed he had was unmatched.

Mika Häkkinen. Always had a soft spot for him.

Valentino Rossi. He’s a phenomenon.

Edited by MortenF1, 30 December 2020 - 00:58.

[maximilian]

Imma stick to drivers who at least drove in F1 at some point in time:

 

Derek Warwick - the man is the reason I became a racing fan to begin with.  I watched his astonishing drive to running 2nd in the 1982 British GP, and was so fascinated with the underdog story that I became an F1 fan on the spot, and HUGELY pulling for Derek and team Toleman from then on.  I was completely over the moon when they FINALLY scored their very first points ever in 1983, and full of joy and expectations when Warwick became a Renault factory driver in 1984 (alas, we all know how that turned out).  Still a big fan until the end of his career, I consider him one of the great wasted talents that never had a chance to shine in a top ride.

 

Jacques Villeneuve - say what you will, I was a big fan from his days in IndyCar, and elated when he became WDC.  Similar to Warwick, his career then never really lived up to the promise or potential thereafter, but I kept pulling for him until the bitter end.

 

Takuma Sato - already a fan when he was in F1, especially also with the Super Aguri outfit - what's not to love??  And then, of course, his Indy career is absolutely legendary for so many reasons.  I never felt such intense emotions watching a race than when Sato took his first Indianapolis 500 "redemption" win.  That moment will forever be the greatest in my personal race history.  I never laughed, shouted, and cried blood, sweat and tears like I did that day!

 

Niki Lauda - do I really need to elaborate?  The man is absolute legend in so many ways, and now sorely missed.  And of course, he is a compatriot.  A great source of pride for us homegrown-sports-superstar-starved Austrians! 

 

And from the current grid - Daniel Ricciardo.  Great bloke, and I really hope he gets a chance to show what he can really do (again).  Like so many of my loves, his career is going an iffy path and makes you wonder "what if" - but maybe McLaren will be the tuning point that returns him to the top of the grid, where I hope he'll once again be in the near future.

[Con1]

All Time:

 

Lewis Hamilton. He's gone from my "need to find someone new to support after DC" to the GOAT.

 

David Coulthard: I'm Scottish. So I was always naturally predisposed to him. Genuinely nice guy who made the most of his talent. He was never "elite", but he was very good.

 

Damon Hill: Arrived in F1 late, dealt with the most tragic of circumstances within his team, went up against Michael Schumacher and won a WDC. It's worth remembering that Max Verstappen has already had a longer career than Hill and has won less than half the races that Hill did.

 

Sir Jackie Stewart: Three WDCs in an era where you were more likely to die than win a championship. And he is from my home town so kind of have to pick him...

 

My last choice was tough. Mansell, Hunt or Niki Lauda. Had to take Lauda.

 

 

Of the current crop, other than Hamilton, I like to keep an eye on Danny Ric, Lando, Russell, Perez and, of course, Kimi.

 

Outside of F1 Colin McRae and Valentino Rossi. I met Colin's father Jimmy on a few occasions but sadly never Colin. 

[MKSixer]

Oh boy.  This is a tough one.

 

No longer racing:

Hunt...My first fav driver

Gilles Villeneuve - his death was my first adult heartbreak.  I was watching the session when he had the shunt and leapt to my feet in horror.  I've only had that feeling 3 other times while watching racing.  Senna. Bordais in Indy practice in 2017. Grojean this season.

Piquet...What a driver in his heyday!!!  

Lauda...Met him in Germany at the German GP when I was there as a guest of Mercedes Benz.  It doesn't get much more Modern Formula One than that.  

Senna.  I don't need to say more.

 

Current

Hamilton - I've followed his career since 2004 in the lesser formulae. Graduation to GP2 was epic. Then F1.  The ups and downs. Watching McLaren throw championships away with inept strategy, horrible pit stops, mechanical failures and any other manner of stupidity. Cheering when he went to Mercedes after I enjoyed time with the team as a guest after seeing the operation.  Watching him grow into the greatest racer of all-time in F1, IMHO. 

RIC - If you can't like and enjoy Danny Ric in F1, you have no soul. 

PER - Wasn't a fan, early on but his last 2 years have made me reconsider. Plucky with a never say die attitude.

LEC - The Anti-Verstappen

VET - I can't believe I'm writing this but his grace in 2018, 2019 and this year have won me over.  A solid and mature 4x WDC who deserves every measure of success at Aston Martin Racing in 2022

 

Honorable Mentions -

Robert Wickens. Class act, incredible strength of character. My first laps with a real Internationally credentialed driver were with him.  Amazing learning lesson.

David Coulthard - Spent time with him behind the scenes at a race and he is a genuinely good guy, party animal and shrewd businessman.  Completely honest about his skill level and his pantheon in driver rankings.  A man who knows himself. A rare commodity.

[mclarensmps]

All time:
Mika Hakkinen: He's the reason I'm an F1 fan, and also a McLaren fan. before '97 I only had the ability to watch F1 highlights, and that not even at home. My first full season (or mostly full season) was 1998. Have missed very few races ever since. Thank you Mika! (My cat is named after him, because he's got a black and grey coat  )

BIG

GAP

Lewis Hamilton: I am a huge fan of Ron Dennis, for everything he put into McLaren and for what he turned McLaren into. Lewis was Ron's "chosen one". Boy did the kid deliver... and then some. As a driver, he's basically a Schumacher without the on track nastiness. He keeps getting better, too.

Kimi Raikkonen: He had the speed and the mentality to win championships at McLaren. He was the rightful heir to Mika. He was let down by reliability and the team, sadly. He was so much fun to watch, regardless. From Kimi the car-breaker, to the team radio clown that he is now, he's a brilliiant character

 

Alain Prost: I never got to see the rivalry live. I've only watched videos, read articles, and observed forum posts. Yes, Senna was amazing, but the vilification of Prost and the hero worshipping "can do no wrong"-ness of rabid Senna fans turned me the other way.

Takuma Sato: My car-guy group nicknamed him "Banzai Senpai". Always fun to watch, complete underdog (my friends and I had our own main teams that we supported, but we all unanimously had Super Aguri as our second favourite team in that era). Always exciting to watch, had speed, was quite reckless, but was always entertaining. Never watched him in Indycar, though, where he actually achieved something. 

-----------

 

Current group:

Hamilton

Daniel Ricciardo: Gives it his all on-track, and in my opinion, the best overtaker on the grid, still. I hope McLaren gives him a car worthy of his talent

Kimi Raikkonnen

 

Charles Leclerc: He's got almost everything, but is still error prone, which means he still has some work to do on the mental side

 

I am starting to warm to Max, a little... but it's hard. Objectively speaking, he's second only to Lewis. Subjectively speaking... Red Bull... and his own sense of entitlement and petulance... But I'm putting him in my list. He is fun to watch. 

[PlayboyRacer]

I like them fast, fearless, colourful and beyond polarizing. My favourites of the last 30 years of F1

Ayrton Senna
Nigel Mansell
Eddie Irvine
Jacques Villeneuve
Juan Pablo Montoya


The current generation

Lewis Hamilton
Kimi Raikkonen
Daniel Ricciardo
Charles Leclerc
Fernando Alonso

More than 30 years ago

James Hunt
Niki Lauda
Keke Rosberg
Gilles Villeneuve
Nelson Piquet

[Marklar]

2020 grid
Hamilton
Perez
Leclerc
Vettel
Verstappen

Other
Montoya
Alonso
HHF
Bianchi
Kobayashi

I tend to only develop attraction to people I actively witnessed, hence why this isnt going more far back.

Edited by Marklar, 30 December 2020 - 06:01.

[Arska]

Damon Hill - He was the British driver who was winning everything in the first full season I watched (1993) and I really came to like his personality.

 

Do explain how Damon was winning everything in 1993.

[404KF2]

In no particular order:

• Gilles Villeneuve
• Jacques Villeneuve
• Nigel Mansell
• Damon Hill
• Alain Prost

Other overall motorsport favourites, no particular order:

• Gilles Panizzi
• Juha Kankkunen
• Bert Shankland
• Jules Goux
• Sebastien Loeb

[Marklar]

Do explain how Damon was winning everything in 1993.

he says the first Brit who won everything since he started watching in 1993.

[Beri]

I never really had favorite drivers that I cheered for. I was a Williams fan from the go and I always cheered for the drivers of that team. But I will try to make it into a top 5:

 

All time and current combined:

Mansell

Hill

Villeneuve

Montoya

Russell

[Dunc]

Do explain how Damon was winning everything in 1993.

 

In 1993, with Nigel Mansell having retired, Hill was the only British driver who was winning races and getting podiums. "Winning everything" was just clumsy phrasing. 

 

Without clumsy phrasing, I also said "no judgement" so let's get back to listing our own favourite fives rather than trying to analyse other people's choices.

[Ivanhoe]

Ever

Lauda

the Villeneuves

Prost

Montoya

Hamilton

 

Current grid

Hamilton

Verstappen

Leclerc

Ricciardo

Vettel

 

Soft spots

Arnoux

Damon Hill

Brundle

Herbert

Coulthard

Edited by Ivanhoe, 30 December 2020 - 16:40.

[Beri]

Ever

Lauda

the Villeneuves

Prost

Montoya

Hamilton

 

Current grid

Hamilton

Verstappen

Leclerc

Ricciardo

Vettel

 

Sweet spots

Arnoux

Damon Hill

Brundle

Herbert

Coulthard

 

Thats 6 

[Frood]

Thats 6 

7 if you count l'Oncle Jacques!

[Anja]

Having started in 2007 I don't have many faves among non-active F1 drivers but I guess it would have to be something like this:

 

Alonso

Kubica

Kobayashi

Button

Vergne

 

(technically Rossi should be there but I don't really associate him with F1)

 

And 2020 grid:

 

Sainz

Leclerc

Ricciardo

Perez

Raikkonen I guess, swap for Alonso when we hit 2021 

[Aaaarrgghh]

Well, I've watched since around 1997 and I think I've actually only rooted for four drivers.

• Mika Häkkinen. The West McLaren-Mercedes cars were lookers and the other F1 nerd in the household was a Schumi fan.
• Ralf Schumacher. Once again the B&H Jordans and the Williams-BMW cars were very good-looking. I also felt sympathy for him being the younger brother of one of the best drivers of all time. I liked him even more as the other F1 nerd in the household became a Montoya fan.
• Robert Kubica. He was damned impressive at Monza in 2006 and throughout 2008 and 2010.
• Fernando Alonso. I was really tired of him around 2007, but come 2012 he really turned me around. He is the latest driver that I can actually say that I root for irrespective of what team he drives for and - given that as I have grown older, I don't really care anymore who wins as long as they are a good driver and there is some variety from year to year - probably the last.

I don't really have a favourite on the 2020 grid. As long as F1 can surprise me and throw my expectations out the window, I am happy.

Edited by Aaaarrgghh, 18 February 2021 - 07:46.

[Baddoer]

Mazzacane

Baumgartner

Nakajima

Karthykean

Chilton

[DutchQuicksilver]

All time since watching (which was around 1999/2000).

Hakkinen - Mostly because I couldn’t stand Schumacher and Hakkinen was his title rival when I started watching. Also liked the West McLaren cars back then.

Raikkonen - Successor to Hakkinen and also Finnish. Also became a Schumacher rival and I liked his cool no nonsense personality.

Villeneuve - Always spoke his mind and just liked his driving. Was a real character.

Massa - Became a bit of a fan during the 2008 season. Such a passionate driver and generally seems like a nice guy.

Heidfeld - Was a very underestimated driver. Became a fan of him during his BMW Sauber spell. Should have won a race, a shame he didn’t.

 

Current grid:

Raikkonen - See above, he’s still driving, so automatically on this list as well.

Grosjean - Unlike a lot of people who aren’t big fans, I gained a lot of sympathy for him during his Haas years. He’s actually a very fast driver who’s just unlucky a lot of the times.

Sainz - Seems like a nice bloke and I like his consistent driving and his nice overtaking ways.

Gasly - Gained sympathy for him just like with Grosjean after he was dismissed at Red Bull. 

Perez - I like his agressiveness when overtaking and his attacking style on track.

[BRG]

The human heroes - inspiring, a little crazy, exciting, indomitable, but not necessarily the very best:-

 

Gilles Villeneuve

Stig Blomqvist

Derek Bell

Graham Hill

Mario Andretti

 

The superhuman heroes or Galacticos:-

 

Valentino Rossi

Jim Clark

Sebastian Loeb

Lewis Hamilton

 

& of course, the Godfather of them all

Juan-Manuel Fangio

[Claymore25]

Formula 1 All time (started in 1994)

 

*Gerhard Berger.

*Mika Hakkinen.

*Kimi Raikkonen.

*Giancarlo Fisichella.

*Michael Schumacher.

 

Formula 1 Current Grid

 

*Sebastian Vettel.

*Kimi Raikkonen.

*Max Verstappen.

*Charles Leclerc.

*Daniel Ricciardo.

 

Moto GP.

 

*Valentino Rossi.

*Casey Stoner.

 

 

I watched Indi Car a lot but don't have any preference.

 

Not fan of rallies or endurances series.

[Dolph]

F1 all time:

Nigel Mansell

Michael Schumacher

Giancarlo Fisichella

Romain Grosjean

Max Verstappen

 

F1 current:

Max Verstappen

Mick Schumacher

 

 

Indycar all time:

Nigel Mansell

Jacques Villeneuve

Greg Moore

Alex Zanardi

Sebastian Bourdais

Will Power

 

Indycar current:

Will Power

Colton Herta

Patricio O'Ward

 

Moto GP all time:

Doohan

Biaggi

Rossi

Edited by Dolph, 30 December 2020 - 13:56.

[Cyanide]

Current grid:

Leclerc

Ricciardo

Sainz

Russell

Verstappen

 

All time:

Raikkonen

Montoya

Alonso

Hunt

Senna

[mclarensmps]

Mazzacane

Baumgartner

Nakajima

Karthykean

Chilton

 

I'm sad that you excluded Inoue and  Maldonado. 

 

[jAnO76]

Mika H,
Max,
Juan Pablo,
Fred,
Dan

Dishonorable mentions:
Ralf,
Christian A,

[cpbell]

In my years of following F1:

 

Senna - my favourite driver from my impressionable years.  Flawed of course, but there was something magnetic about him in interviews, and sometimes you got the feeling that he was defying the Laws of Physics.  Until 2020, he was my personal second greated F1 driver of all time behind Fangio.

 

Damon - I was fascinated by how Graham rose from a fairly ordinary background to becoming this determined professional driver with the personality of a raconteur, and I saw all of Damon's F1 career.  I think he was underrated by most, including himself.  Rather like the earlier comment on Fisichella, Damon needed to feel appreciated and confident to perform, but, because he was, and is, a gentleman and a human fighting Greats, I supported him.

 

Alesi - passionate man, talented and brave but made the worst decision of my F1 years to go to Ferrari, and faded ito retirement in a succession of bad cars, but you knew how much it meant to him, and, on his day, he could do something incredible.

 

Barrichello - I remember his performance at Donington in 1993 which was overshadowed by Senna's brilliance.  How he put up with being Schumacher's domestique for that long I don't know.  I always felt he was another driver that relied on confidence, but his unfiltered pleasure at being on the podium and his victory in the rain at Hockenheim in 2000 were just wonderful to witness in a sport where PR speak ruins so much.

 

DC - another nice chap who would have achieved more had he been a better qualifier and been more aggressive.  I was deeply impressed when he came back so soon after his plane crash and out-Schumachered Schumacher at Magny-Cours.  Great broadcater as well.

 

Honourable mentions - Mark Webber for being a flinty yet honest driver who came so close to the WDC and for being the last of the classical momentum drivers in style before the "early rotation" technique took over, Mika, for being the only consistent competition to Schumacher between 1998 and 2001 (sorry, DC) and for leaving the sport when he first noticed his skill deteriorating.  Brundle for being a Norfolkman made good (and what an endurance racer!), Johnny Herbert for being irrepressible and surviving Briatore, Berger for bringing out the human being in Senna and still being competitive in 1997, and Button for reinventing himself from a wasted talent to being a WDC.

Edited by cpbell, 30 December 2020 - 15:28.

[Radoye]

All-time:

 

(that i saw race):

Lauda

Senna

Hakkinen

 

(before my time)

Fangio

Stewart

 

Today:

Anyone racing for McLaren

[balage06]

It's weird, because I mainly pick my favorites in junior categories and most of my supported drivers end up outside of F1. But if I really had to choose my top 5's:

 

Current grid:

Hamilton

Ricciardo

Max

Norris

Russell

 

All time:

Häkkinen

Montoya

Räikkönen

Kubica

Grosjean

 

But I support drivers like:

Rob Wickens

Robin Frijns

Mitch Evans

Edo Mortara

René Rast

Liam Lawson... and I could go further.

Edited by balage06, 30 December 2020 - 15:26.

[cpbell]

Current:

 

Hamilton - has broken down walls, redefined the F1 driver and is one of the greatest of all - not just the F1 era.

 

Alonso (valid?) - bit annoying, but the best racecraft driver since Prost, IMO.  2012 was his greatest year.

 

Bottas - honest, hard-working and underrated due to being up against Hamilton

 

Ricciardo - great overtaker and personality

 

Russell - maturity and speed.  Also a Norfolkman.

[rodnet1]

All time (that I saw driving):
Clark
Stewart
Villeneuve
Piquet
Schumacher

Present:
Verstappen
Ricciardo
Hamilton
Leclerc
Russell

[FTB]

All Time: ( Those who I watched )

Alonso

Montoya

Kubica

Button

Bianchi

 

 

2020 Grid:

Leclerc

Ricciardo

Verstappen

Sainz

Struggled with the fifth one. Can be Perez, Bottas, Russell, Hamilton or Norris. Really don't have a preference among those.

[alframsey]

This has actually made me think about who I like past and present and my thoughts on some drivers has changed drastically, or maybe it is just my age. Anyway I will only include years I have watched F1, 96-2020, and only include F1 as it is mostly the only motorsport I follow very closely. Other series I only know on a surface level. In no particular order:

 

Of all time

 

Hakkinen - The first racing driver I really, really loved. My Dad was (is) a McLaren fan and so am I, rightly or wrongly we hated Schumacher because of his underhand tactics and Mika took the fight to him and won two WDC for the team.

 

Damon Hill - I have a vague recollection of watching him in his Williams but not so clear, more memories of his time at Jordan and his win at Spa. He was the biggest British name in my mind as the British WDC on the grid. He has a certain kind of romance connected to him.

 

Raikonen - I really believed he would be McLaren's answer to Ferrari and Schumacher but he could never quite get the car to take the fight to them. I love him mostly for his McLaren days and then his amazing return to the sport. He was so fast at McLaren. I was always a fan.

 

Hamilton - What to say? My all time favourite racing driver and someone I have been a fan of since day one, his speed in 2007 was something to behold. We wax lyrical about Max now but really Lewis' arrival and being able to beat Alonso at many points was unreal. Truly a special talent had arrived. Then he has gone on to achieve everything he has while also having a voice, something I admire. I love how he came back from a dreadful 2011 campaign and then put in his strongest season to that point in 2012, he has faced challenges and overcame them. His ability was confirmed at McLaren, his legend was cemented at Mercedes. Long may he continue!

 

Webber - I never realised just how much I liked Webber until he left the sport and then even more until just now. Sat here racking my brains I realised I loved his no nonsense style to racing, both inside and outside the car, and that underdog spirit while he was at RBR up against their golden boy. He never quite had the speed or talent to make it over the line and win a title but he was more than capable on his day of beating the very very best. What might have been had he not crashed out in Korea. Plus, I love a man who calls a spade a spade.

 

Current

 

Hamilton - See above.

 

Leclerc - I liked this kid from the moment he arrived. He is polite, charming and bloody fast. His days at Alfa provided a taster, the 2019 delivered the goods and (imo) this year delivered the main course. Honestly, he blew away a 4 times WDC in both seasons in a Ferrari and showed he can beat the best in the sport. He has some creases he needs to iron out to be considered up there with Lewis and Max (that says a lot about how they are performing imo). I really feel he is going to be the defining driver of his era and a thorn in Max's side.

 

Verstappen - Now I realise the way I post about Max might not seem like I am a fan of his but I really am, I love his style and his take no prisoner attitude, he really reminds me of Lewis in his early days and, to be honest, this season like he is becoming a seasoned veteran like Lewis. I am amazed that he is only 23 years old, 23!, and yet he seems like a seasoned vet who has the speed and racing mind of a 30 year old. It is clear only he and Lewis are operating at that elite level right now. He has another 17 years in the sport if he wants and God knows what he could achieve. It will be fascinating to watch the rivalry between him and Charles over the years.

 

Norris - I do not think he is a top tier F1 driver and nor do I think he ever will be, as far as I can see his career is going to follow a path similar to someone like DC or maybe Massa who, should everything align, he might make a fight of a WDC. I'd love to be proven wrong a he is a great lad and I love how he approaches racing and how honest he is about being scared of dying (something idiots like Magnusen pretend they don't care about because "I'm a racing driver, don't you know?") and where he is lacking. I am rooting for him and I would be delighted if he proved me wrong.

 

Perez - another who I have been a fan of since he arrived. He might not be even the fourth fastest driver in the sport but in these current tyre regs he is better than most of the grid at achieving great results. He had one poor season at McLaren whilst driving a dog of a car against a very very experienced teammate who was the darling of the team. He has proven during his time at Sauber and Force India/Racing Point that he is a points machine who can get a great result should the moment arise. His first win of his career and then signing for RBR are personal highlights. He will not beat Max, probably not even trouble him, over a season but I expect him to beat him every now and then.

 

Special mentions (both current and before my time watching) - Lauda, Prost, Senna, Schumacher, HHF, Berger, DC, Sainz and Gasly.

 

Edit to add bloody Mansell! How could I ever forget??? My fellow Brummie too. 

Edited by alframsey, 30 December 2020 - 19:39.

[Anderis]

I'll not limit myself to 5 because it would require too much thinking of which drivers to leave out.

 

All time F1 drivers I've had a soft spot for, including some that had been driving before I started watching or was even born. In more or less chronological order- at the top the drivers I started to like first:

 

Robert Kubica- but only early in his early career -as first ever F1 driver from Poland

Alexander Wurz - he was a tall guy and I'm tall too and being tall is a disadvantage in F1 so I guess that's it

Nico Rosberg- he was beating Wurz and I developed a soft spot for Williams too so it only made sense to root for him

Adrian Sutil - for his underdog performances in Spyker/Force India

Heinz-Harald Frentzen- I guess I mostly liked his name

Jochen Rindt- when I was reading about old times in F1- he caught my special attention for a reason I cannot explain

Jerome d'Ambrosio- I guess I mostly liked his name

Nico Hulkenberg- I was sure he was the next big thing and only a matter of time before he proves the doubters wrong

Pastor Maldonado- the combination of being an underdog in a Williams, having a lot of haters and me liking his name

Sergey Sirotkin- I've always felt his pre F1-record was ridiculously underrated

 

to a lesser extent:

Mark Webber- he had one thing in common with a girl I had a crush on at that time

Kazuki Nakajima- used to have many haters here in Poland and I thought he was better than many would give him credit for

Vitaly Petrov- I used to have a pro-Russian bias when I was younger

 

The German-speaking bias seems to be quite coincidental. I've never rooted for Germans/Austrians much outside of racing.

 

Out of the current crop I don't have many favourites. I often cheer for Stroll to do well just to annoy/silence his haters but it's been a while I had a driver I was truly rooting for.

Edited by Anderis, 30 December 2020 - 16:16.

[Dick Dastardly]

All time:  Ronnie Peterson  Tony Brise  James Hunt  Jenson Button   Mark Webber. 

 

These were the  guys I rooted for in F1. I could add Nigel Mansell, Damon Hill plus Lewis Hamilton in his 1st couple of F1 years with McLaren. Note that Hunt, Button, Mansell, Hill, Webber & Hamilton were in contention to win the 1st WDCs, hence rooting for them....once, they'd achieved that [Webber excepted], I couldn't care less.....when Button & Hamilton were together at McLaren, I rooted for Button over Hamilton. Webber I rooted for because of the way he was treated by Red Bull when Vettel was their favoured one, I really wish MW had won that 2010 WDC.

Huunt v Lauda, Mansell v Senna, Hill v Schumacher.....the British driver was my favoured one...even rooted for Eddie Irvine when it looked like he might win the 1999 WDC.  

 

Not certain about any of the current F1 drivers apart from George Russell & Lando Norris

Edited by Dick Dastardly, 30 December 2020 - 19:11.

[AlexPrime]

Damon Hill was my first favorite driver as I cheered for him against the mighty Schumacher.

I switched to Hakkinen when McLaren Mercedes became silver.

On the other side of the ocean, I was awed by Alex Zanardi. Since the CART era, my respect for him grew even more.

Later, Sebastian Vettel became my favorite F1 driver, despite some early seasons in which I was not cheering for him.
However, in the last few years I don't watch F1, so my favorite racer right now is Marc Marquez.

This is my Top 5 

[noriaki]

Kazuki Nakajima- used to have many haters here in Poland and I thought he was better than many would give him credit for

This one left me confused. Why did Polish fans hate Kazuki Nakajima out of all people ???

Listing only drivers who I've watched live.

F1 former: JPM, (old career) Kubica, Webber, Kamui and I used to like Bottas but that's worn out really.
Current: only Ricciardo, and potentially Norris in the future, I guess. Hopefully Tsunoda will turn out well.

Non F1 former: Makinen, Solberg, Panizzi, Justin Wilson and Loeb
Non F1 current: Alex Rossi, Colton Herta, JEV, Will Power and Ott Tanak

[grandmastashi]

All time

Damon Hill

Jenson Button

Fernando Alonso

Nigel Mansell

Alex Zanardi

 

Current

Sebastian Vettel

Lando Norris

Daniel Ricciardo 

Fernando Alonso

Pierre Gasly

[Anderis]

This one left me confused. Why did Polish fans hate Kazuki Nakajima out of all people ???

He crashed into Kubica in his 2nd F1 race. Under SC above all IIRC so it was in fact a bit embarassing crash for him.

 

Add some stereotypes about Japanese drivers that were developed thanks to guys like Taki Inoue and Yuji Ide and the fact that Kazuki was in F1 thanks to Toyota support (in an era when there were few true pay-drivers) and many didn't see him being in F1 on merit and you have a perfect combination for many mean comments on the Internet.

Edited by Anderis, 30 December 2020 - 21:03.

[KWSN - DSM]

Looking back I find that I had a lot more favorites in the past than I have now, 1980ies seems to be when I had the most, that would mean from early to late 20ies.

 

All Time

Keke Rosberg

Michael Schumacher

Nico Rosberg

Kamui Kobayashi

Olivier Panis

 

I have vetted a longer list since could only have 5 - not on list who could have been:

 

Jacques Lafitte

Marc Surer

Piercarlo Ghinzani

Michele Alboreto

Allesandro Nannini

Nick Heidfeld

Clay Reggazoni

Carlos Reutemann

 

Current

Kevin Magnussen

Sergio Perez

Pierre Gasly

 

Even Perez and Gasly are stretches, and Magnussen gone likely forever - Drivers have lost becoming the automatons they are requited to be now - And wearing old mans hat, shorts and sandals (with socks) they are too darn entitled and complaining woe is me muppets.