I think it is also the case that the way F1 has developed with big and heavy cars and tyres doesn't suit his style, so it's hard to identify his "true" prime. Could be as far back as 2012, or 2014.
Disagree. I think you’re thinking of the Lewis that could hustle cars and dance them on a knife edge and I agree with you there, that was an incredible version of Lewis. Then Mercedes figured out that he’s very good in high speed but not the greatest, but he’s the greatest in low speed. So they kept increasing the wheelbase, kept low rake to give him a high downforce stable platform in high speed and relied on his ability to compensate for the low speed deficiency of the car with his extraordinary ability to provoke an non-reactive car, then control on the edge and rotate the car in low speed. Lewis could make use of the stability in high speed, but force it to dance in the low speed. Because, lap time is made up in low speed corners.
As an interesting aside, I think Red Bull equally harnessed Verstappen’s strengths in the opposite way. Because I think Max is very good in low speed, but I don’t think he’s the greatest. But he’s the greatest in high speed. So they gave him a car with high rake, that was very reactive in low speed to help him in those sections and relied on his ability to compensate for the instability at high speed, that deficiency of the car with his extraordinary ability to feel and hold it on the knife edge without losing control. Max could dance the agile car in low speed but still hold onto it in high speed. Because lap time is made up in low speed corners.
This is why as both Mercedes and Red Bull figured out a design philosophy for their respective lead drivers, it became hard for their team mates to keep up. The Mercedes was too lethargic in low speed for Valtteri so he would force setup to make it more agile there. He was good enough to generally cope with the relative negative effect that introduced in high speed but would suffer with rears wearing or overheating during the race because of that. Similarly, with Max’s team mates they couldn’t live with the instability at high speed so would force setup to calm the car down in high speed but which would degrade its rotation in low speed. So their team mates were always trying to force setup away from the car’s inherent strengths, which suited the lead drivers, but not them. The saving grace in that era though, was at least the cars had a reasonable window that could allow for different setups. But it does demonstrate that even with a wider window, when you combine a car design philosophy that matches the strengths and minimises the relative weaknesses of a very talented driver, then you have an extremely strong package. The only way to have both drivers in the same team maximise it is by putting in two drivers with similar strengths and weaknesses in that regard.
The results with Hamilton since 2022, and especially now, are stark because now he is that team mates. If he sets the car up for high speed stability, he is unable to provoke the rear in a controllable way to rotate. It’s either lethargic and understeers, and if he tries too hard, it snaps in low speed and loses time. The sudden shift in floor downforce as he tries to provoke isn’t working for him. If he sets it up for front end bite, it’s too unstable for him in high speed. This is how Charles is starting to set it up and finding lap time, at least relative to Lewis. In this regard I think Max and Charles’ styles are actually very similar. Unless they are team mates, it would be impossible to say who can handle the high speed instability better but would be a fascinating battle. Conversely, even regardless of age I think if you give them all a car that has is stable at high speed but lethargic at low speed (but not unpredictable when provoking controlled instability to aid rotation), then I think Lewis wipes the floor with all of them.
It’s fascinating because you never really know what a driver’s weaknesses are until he’s put in a situation which exposes it. Contrary to some of his fans’ belief, Lewis has never been a perfect driver even at his peak. But I don’t think any of them including Max is. It’s only if they stay around long enough across different regulations and eras that the probability of such increases. When it’s a great driver, with very few weaknesses and considerable strengths, then only a specific circumstance is likely to expose it. I think that’s what we’ve seen here with these cars with a very narrow operating window and characteristic that misaligns with Lewis’s characteristics. I think he would have still been exposed 10 years ago.
Edited by gillesfan76, 20 April 2025 - 04:25.
