45 replies to this topic

[hodgsonc]

I'm personally not impressed with Ralf Schumacher and just wondered what the community though:

Would Ralf Schumacher still be an F1 driver if he had a different surname?

[pUs]

Yes, I certainly think so. Not only that, he would probably have a lot more fans.

[Bjorn Kjer]

RS is worthy of F1 , he is is as good as most, and on his day with the right equipment.......
if he had Alonsos car , he would be a real challenger to the crown ! Please Alonso fans read what I wrote , I did NOT say he is as good,neither better!

[BRG]

If his name was Ralf Schmidt , he would never have even got within whingeing range of a an F1 seat in the first place. His pre-F1 results are inferior to many drivers who have never had any of the chances that have been showered on Schumacher junior - simply because of his big brother's talent.

Why anyone should consider employing Ralf as a F1 driver at all - let alone paying him the mega-bucks that he actually gets - is a continuing mystery to me.

[baddog]

Originally posted by BRG
If his name was Ralf Schmidt , he would never have even got within whingeing range of a an F1 seat in the first place. His pre-F1 results are inferior to many drivers who have never had any of the chances that have been showered on Schumacher junior - simply because of his big brother's talent.

Why anyone should consider employing Ralf as a F1 driver at all - let alone paying him the mega-bucks that he actually gets - is a continuing mystery to me.

Im sure it is

[BRG]

Originally posted by baddog
Im sure it is

And it's even more of a mystery after yesterday's bone-headed performance.

[Stian1979]

He shure do bether than trulli on average, but that don't say that mutch dos it?

I think it's car development skils teams are looking for, he also was equal to montoya at williams.

[ivanalesi]

Originally posted by BRG
If his name was Ralf Schmidt , he would never have even got within whingeing range of a an F1 seat in the first place. His pre-F1 results are inferior to many drivers who have never had any of the chances that have been showered on Schumacher junior - simply because of his big brother's talent.

How? He finished 3rd in German F3 in his very 1st season and made the great battle with Wurz around Avus and then finished a very close 2nd to Norberto Fontana in a great year long battle, and back then Norberto was damn fast before his crash. Then went on to win Jap. F3000! By this time, he was very very young.
Ralf's biggest enemy is the press. Right now his name is not helping him.
Well, his salary is really a mystery but it wasnt Michael or Ralf who found Wili Weber, it was Wili Weber who found Michael because he was impressive and then went on with Ralf.

[BRG]

Originally posted by ivanalesi
How? He finished 3rd in German F3 in his very 1st season and made the great battle with Wurz around Avus and then finished a very close 2nd to Norberto Fontana in a great year long battle, and back then Norberto was damn fast before his crash.

So you agree that Ralf didn't manage to win a F3 championship - even at his second attempt? And not even back in 1994/5 when it was only the German series and was generally reckoned to be less competitive than the British series?

Whereas guys like Green, Parente, van der Merwe and a dozen more won F3 championships and have never had a sniff of a F1 seat. And Japanese F3000 champion - so was Ralph Firman and where is he today? If only those poor guys had been called Schumacher.....

And where are Wurz and Fontana today, who you yourself admit were better than Ralfie boy?

[baddog]

The thing is, Ralf got a not especially flash F1 seat, and proved himself quickly enough. At Williams he was a pillar for the team, both in setups and often in results. There are SO MANY other drivers who got to F1 who deserve it much less than he.

[Mox]

Originally posted by baddog
The thing is, Ralf got a not especially flash F1 seat, and proved himself quickly enough. At Williams he was a pillar for the team, both in setups and often in results. There are SO MANY other drivers who got to F1 who deserve it much less than he.

However unimpressed I am with Ralfie, the above is definately true!

[Louis Mr. F1]

are there actually any Ralf fans?

[Red ITC]

In the context of the Canadian GP I don't think the question is about Ralf's abilities, but rather what Toyota thought they were doing running a mobile chicane with no good reason. Teams watching the pennies, like Aguri and Midland, can profit from "testing" mileage even when 2 or 3 laps down on a Sunday. Toyota have the cash to supply a private jet for technical staff and have no excuse to compromise anyone else's weekend - apart from the obvious comedy value, which was lost on Villeneuve.

[Bjorn Kjer]

Sorry I forgot to answer this threads q : Yes!
And no, I am not ANY Schumacher fan. Nobody with normal sences can deny that Ralf has talent !
Add to that M_O_N_E_Y_!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[SlateGray]

Originally posted by hodgsonc
I'm personally not impressed with Ralf Schumacher and just wondered what the community though:

Would Ralf Schumacher still be an F1 driver if he had a different surname?

Better question: Would Ralf ever have been in F1 if his name was Ralph Smith? IMHO No.

He is not that bad, but on the other hand he ain't that good. I can see him being a pay driver.

baddog is Ralf's only fan!

[John B]

quote of the Speed broadcast: "Earn that 20 million Ralf" as the camera recorded a spinout...

[ensign14]

Originally posted by baddog
There are SO MANY other drivers who got to F1 who deserve it much less than he.

True. But there's a whole bunch more not in F1 who deserve it much more than he.

[baddog]

Originally posted by ensign14
True. But there's a whole bunch more not in F1 who deserve it much more than he.

Im not sure you could say there are a LOT given his results in F1.

[Rallimies Kujala]

Originally posted by baddog

Im not sure you could say there are a LOT given his results in F1.

Makes you wonder what kind of rocketship that Williams was.

[MikeTekRacing]

this is strange.
the VERY FIRST race this year trulli ends up with points, ralf sucks. well, up until now he has destroyed jarno.
if ralf doesn't belong here, jarno should have been gone a long time ago.

[baddog]

Originally posted by Rallimies Kujala


Makes you wonder what kind of rocketship that Williams was.

If you think that extrapolating from your not very educated guess of a drivers ability is the best way to assess a cars performance then yes, it does.

[Rallimies Kujala]

Originally posted by baddog


If you think that extrapolating from your not very educated guess of a drivers ability is the best way to assess a cars performance then yes, it does.

Well considering how Montoya who is being whacked around by Räikkönen now schooled Half for most of the time when they were team-mates I think Half is not that great.

[baddog]

As ralf won more races in that car than Juan, it would be very fair to say he was not lacking any speed in comparison, albeit Juan was more consistent.

[Nukle]

Ralf is a good driver, and very fast if everything is ok, but how many times is everything ok for Ralf? Not too much, and it´s going less and less...

[BRG]

Originally posted by baddog
The thing is, Ralf got a not especially flash F1 seat

Jordan were 5th in the WCC in 1997. Not exactly back of the grid. Most rookies would give their eyeteeth for a not especially flashy seat like that.

[ivanalesi]

Originally posted by BRG
So you agree that Ralf didn't manage to win a F3 championship - even at his second attempt? And not even back in 1994/5 when it was only the German series and was generally reckoned to be less competitive than the British series?

Whereas guys like Green, Parente, van der Merwe and a dozen more won F3 championships and have never had a sniff of a F1 seat. And Japanese F3000 champion - so was Ralph Firman and where is he today? If only those poor guys had been called Schumacher.....

And where are Wurz and Fontana today, who you yourself admit were better than Ralfie boy?

He won Macao and at that time Irvine and Frentzen also had goes at Japanese F3000, we are talking about different time periods. Also in 1996 a certain Jarno Trulli won with Bertrand guys German F3. Wurz was more experienced than Ralf then, and I'm not saying that he was better than him in fact Ralf beat him. Fontana was better or at least equal, he had a crash and everyone knows that afterwards this was another Fontana(incl. Peter Sauber), just like Wendlinger.

[baddog]

Originally posted by BRG
Jordan were 5th in the WCC in 1997. Not exactly back of the grid. Most rookies would give their eyeteeth for a not especially flashy seat like that.

Jordan scored 22 points total in 1996. Decent Midfielders but not a top team at all.

[sensible]

Originally posted by BRG
So you agree that Ralf didn't manage to win a F3 championship - even at his second attempt? And not even back in 1994/5 when it was only the German series and was generally reckoned to be less competitive than the British series?

Whereas guys like Green, Parente, van der Merwe and a dozen more won F3 championships and have never had a sniff of a F1 seat. And Japanese F3000 champion - so was Ralph Firman and where is he today? If only those poor guys had been called Schumacher.....

And where are Wurz and Fontana today, who you yourself admit were better than Ralfie boy?

You'd have to be pretty blind to pretend that his name didnt play an overwhelming part in getting him a seat, but he's not the first and certainly wont be the last. Looking at his career without bias (because he's MICHAEL's brother, because Juan didnt like him etc etc), you can't deny he's done ok. Not brilliant, not a michael or a kimi, but not bad. He's held his own against a good few drivers who've been rated highly, been champion etc. He's a bit like Fisi in that he hasnt got the consistency to put together a championship challenge, but on his day he's as fast as any. Added to that he's won races. There's not so many (including a fair few in good teams) who can say that.

[F1Fanatic.co.uk]

I've never been a fan of Ralf, but after reading this, he's gone up in my estimations:

http://www.autosport...ne.php/id/52744

[andrimitum]

BadDog is a RS fan,

thanks that puts all his posts into persepctive.

[ensign14]

Originally posted by F1Fanatic.co.uk
I've never been a fan of Ralf, but after reading this, he's gone up in my estimations:

http://www.autosport...ne.php/id/52744

He went up in mine by not giving up at the Canadian GP. Could easily have done so, no-one would have blamed him and a Grand Prix winner must find it dispiriting scratching around in 17th, but he kept going.

[baddog]

Originally posted by andrimitum
BadDog is a RS fan,

thanks that puts all his posts into persepctive.

Im also a fan of Fisi, Trulli, Sato, Hakkinen, Alesi, and a bunch of others. this probably introduces a raft of new concepts to you, such as not being fixated on one driver, not hating all other drivers for not being that one driver, and not being a ****.

Try it.

[MortenF1]

Ralf Schumacher is indeed a very good driver, but for some (of the younger?) readers, it is totally the wrong time to discuss his worth, after such a horrible race. They lose rationale and clear vision.
Yep, yesterday he was definately the worst performer among those who made the wrong tyre-choice (there was a few - Webber for instance), but that was just one bad race. He's generally held the upper hand on Trulli this year, and his previous team-mates still in F1; Fisichella and Montoya - he matched and often beat them.
An easy counter-answer might be, on the back of yesterdays race, that beating those is nothing special, just look how they performed! Well, again - it's just one race.

I've said it a couple of times before (I remember saying it to Ghostrider, debating Fisichella), that I think Ralf Schumacher has maybe developed into a better driver than Fisichella, partly because he's had far tougher team-mates. He certainly seems "sharper".

People forget that there was genuine interest in Ralf Schumacher in '96 - he wasn't just signed by the shrewd Eddie Jordan for getting more publicity - no, McLaren showed interest as well, and tested him that year.

[SlateGray]

Originally posted by baddog


Im also a fan of Fisi, Trulli, Sato, Hakkinen, Alesi, and a bunch of others. this probably introduces a raft of new concepts to you, such as not being fixated on one driver, not hating all other drivers for not being that one driver, and not being a ****.

Try it.

Baddog Worships M Schumacher, Likes Ralf and HATES Jacques.
Also bd is not very good at "not being a ****"

[GadgetMan]

I was at the race yesterday, sitting right at the Senna curve, after the start line. Believe me, Ralf Schumacher is not only an idiot, but a very dangerous one at that.

I saw him behaving like a real dork all race long yesterday. At some point, he almost took out his own teammate, Jarno Trulli, right at the Senna curve. That was long into the race, when Trulli was in a fight for 6th place and Ralf was out of the scoreboard..

Later on, after a pit stop, Ralf came very close to punting Raikonen out of the track at the same Senna curve. That Ralf held off JV for a couple laps before suddenly slowing down in a chicane to leave no room to JV other than to go off the racing line comes as no surprise to me.

Ralf Schumacher should be given a warning, the same way Ide was given a few warnings before the FIA removed his superlicense.

It's not the first time Ralf causes serious problems to other drivers. I will never forget what he did to JV in Melbourne in 2002, breaking very early into a curve and forcing JV out of the track with the result that we all know about...

Ironically, I think Ralf and Montoya go very well together: 2 ****ing idiots with no or very little brains... We all saw what they both did in the a very good car at Williams in 2003, which is to say, absolutely nothing worth talking about !!!

GadgetMan

[baddog]

Originally posted by SlateGray


Baddog Worships M Schumacher, Likes Ralf and HATES Jacques.
Also bd is not very good at "not being a ****"

I dont hate jacques at all, I think he is a very talented driver and I find the waste of the later part of his career a big shame, but largely his own fault. he also has a smart mouth ;)

I prefer Ralf and Fisi to Michael, though I know he is a much better driver.

[cavallinö]

I am particularly bemused how some people blame him for yesterday. His team should have told him to pull in, or maybe there should be a rule allowing him to be black flagged. As a driver he was trying to make the best of his car. It isn't the first time a slow driver has been kept out.

Ralf deserves his place on the grid. His salary isn't really anyone else's business. F1 isn't egalitarian.

[GadgetMan]

Originally posted by SlateGray


Baddog Worships M Schumacher, Likes Ralf and HATES Jacques.
Also bd is not very good at "not being a ****"

Funny how Baddog always shows up at the first opportunity to piss all over Villeneuve, all the while pretending that he is so objective and un-biased !

Keep it up, Baddog... I've been away for quite a while but I see that you haven't skipped a beat. The fact that you still try to pretend that you have nothing against Villeneuve all the while you always find ways to pooh-pooh him is as entertaining as ever!!!

GadgetMan

[baddog]

I should be complimented, you post about me almost as much as you post about jacques.

I rarely even post in jacques threads, as you would realise if you payed attention.

[DaleCooper]

Originally posted by baddog


Im also a fan of Fisi, Trulli, Sato, Hakkinen, Alesi, and a bunch of others. this probably introduces a raft of new concepts to you, such as not being fixated on one driver, not hating all other drivers for not being that one driver, and not being a ****.

Try it.

very rare qualities, baddog.


On Topic: Ralf belongs in F1, but I can't believe he gets paid so much money, he certainly isn't worth it IMHO.


Cooper

[GadgetMan]

Originally posted by baddog
I should be complimented, you post about me almost as much as you post about jacques.

I rarely even post in jacques threads, as you would realise if you payed attention.

Oh, come on, Baddog...

You were the expert at making snide comments about Villeneuve whenever you had a chance in the days when I used to post a lot in here. Back then, you were arguing the same bullshit about having nothing against Villeneuve and bla, bla, bla... All the while you had your knife deep in JV's back...

Back then, a lot of JV supporters did allude to you being a hypocritical SOB. They still do... Did it ever cross your mind that they might have a point ...

I can see that you have not changed a bit...

Good for you. You are consistent !

GadgetMan

[F1 Tor.]

Allowing Ralf to wake up next to Cora and get paid oodles of money to be average tells me that God likes Ralf very much.

[baddog]

Gadegybaby, Thanks for remembering all about me. Im sure your name rings a vague bell, remind me who you are again?

Shaun

[GadgetMan]

Originally posted by baddog
Gadegybaby, Thanks for remembering all about me. Im sure your name rings a vague bell, remind me who you are again?

Shaun

Oh, you're such a smart-ass, Baddog ...

GadegyBaby !!!

[SlateGray]

Now see here

[santori]

Would Michael be an F1 driver if their father hadn't owned a kart track? Perhaps Ralf wouldn't be an F1 driver if his brother weren't - perhaps he'd never have developed an interest - but he is certainly a very good driver and worthy of being in F1.