Lewis vs. Max

[MKSixer]

Originally Posted by M5theonlyone

Say what you like but you don't know F1 as much as you think my fellow forum member

Sure. 45+ years of watching F1, spending time with multiple teams and knowing luminaries in the sport but I don''t know F1. Gotcha. You are 100% correct.

[Bartledoo]

Lewis was cool as a cucumber at the start. He seems like the only guy who resists the urge to overdrive the car in those scenarios. Probably part of the reason he makes the tires wear so well. He drives as if there is no pressure on him.

[EdM5]

Originally Posted by MKSixer

Ironically, this represents the transition in Hamilton's career from a Senna-"esque" driver to a Prost-"esque" driver.

His explanation of his thought and action process during the opening laps was a clinic.

Agreed. That was legendary stuff.
He told Brundle he massively backed up on the first lap after a moment of massive oversteer cause he didn't know what was next. "I'll come back later".

Composure, the trademark of a true champ.

[Chappers 71]

Just finished watching the race, 92 wins & Lewis probably has another 2/3 seasons before his star starts to fade.
Lewis will undoubtedly become statistically the ultimate F1 driver of all time and fair play to him, deservedly so.

I would still like to see him racing against preferably Seb or Max in the same machinery for a season though just for shits & kicks

Personally Michael will still be my all time number one F1 driver & the nineties & noughties the hey day of F1.

Am looking forward to seeing Mick Schumacher in F1.

[racerbruce]

Originally Posted by MKSixer

Sure. 45+ years of watching F1, spending time with multiple teams and knowing luminaries in the sport but I don''t know F1. Gotcha. You are 100% correct.

Wowie MKSixer!
I thought my 31+ years of following F1 was long
Would love to hear your experiences with the teams and other great observations you have regarding "inside F1"....post them here or feel free to PM me.

[MKSixer]

Originally Posted by racerbruce

Wowie MKSixer!
I thought my 31+ years of following F1 was long
Would love to hear your experiences with the teams and other great observations you have regarding "inside F1"....post them here or feel free to PM me.

I will gather my thoughts together in the coming days and post a few here. I started when I was 10 or so and there were basically 5 or 6 races broadcasted in the states: The USGP, The British GP, Monaco, The German GP, the Italian GP and on occasion the French GP. We had to wait and read Autosport and Road and Track for the rest of the races. Rob Walker and Innes Ireland (former drivers and owners) were my fav writers. I still correspond with Innes Irelands daughter on FB.

My fav drivers in chronological pretty much order were Hunt, Villeneuve, Lauda, Tambay, Senna, Hill, Coulthard, MSC and HAM. Love Norris, LEC and RIC now, as well.

As far as luminaries go, I've met Lauda (intense), MSC, ROS, Ross Brawn (super smart guy), Binotta, Coulthard (biggest party animal on the planet), Maylander (safety car driver), Norbert Haug (former head of Mercedes motorsport), Jamie Green, Robert Wickens, Suzie Wolff, and dozens of people we watch on TV during each race. One of my good friends introduced Lewis and Nicole S. I also correspond with one of the TPs once a quarter or so.

There is nothing like Formula One and hanging out with the teams is simply the best thing on the planet if you are a racing fan.

To say that I love Formula One is the understatement of the year.

I'll start with a quick one that was pretty funny. We were in the Mercedes Benz private club at the track and everyone is mingling. I'm with a buddy of mine who went to grab a couple of drinks and this beautiful young lady walks up to me and asks if I'm an American. I say, "Maybe...why?". She replied "Yes you are...I wish to practice my English!!" I reach out my hand to introduce myself saying, "My name is MK...I'm pleased to meet you." She lights me up with a beaming smile and says, "Great to meet you!! My name is Enis...it rhymes with penis." It turned out that she was one of the models for the Mercedes Benz Fashion Show. What an amazing race weekend!!

Thanks for your insights, as well! I love reading your writings!!

Cheers-mk

[racerbruce]

Originally Posted by MKSixer

I will gather my thoughts together in the coming days and post a few here. I started when I was 10 or so and there were basically 5 or 6 races broadcasted in the states: The USGP, The British GP, Monaco, The German GP, the Italian GP and on occasion the French GP. We had to wait and read Autosport and Road and Track for the rest of the races. Rob Walker and Innes Ireland (former drivers and owners) were my fav writers. I still correspond with Innes Irelands daughter on FB.

My fav drivers in chronological pretty much order were Hunt, Villeneuve, Lauda, Tambay, Senna, Hill, Coulthard, MSC and HAM. Love Norris, LEC and RIC now, as well.

As far as luminaries go, I've met Lauda (intense), MSC, ROS, Ross Brawn (super smart guy), Binotta, Coulthard (biggest party animal on the planet), Maylander (safety car driver), Norbert Haug (former head of Mercedes motorsport), Jamie Green, Robert Wickens, Suzie Wolff, and dozens of people we watch on TV during each race. One of my good friends introduced Lewis and Nicole S. I also correspond with one of the TPs once a quarter or so.

There is nothing like Formula One and hanging out with the teams is simply the best thing on the planet if you are a racing fan.

To say that I love Formula One is the understatement of the year.

I'll start with a quick one that was pretty funny. We were in the Mercedes Benz private club at the track and everyone is mingling. I'm with a buddy of mine who went to grab a couple of drinks and this beautiful young lady walks up to me and asks if I'm an American. I say, "Maybe...why?". She replied "Yes you are...I wish to practice my English!!" I reach out my hand to introduce myself saying, "My name is MK...I'm pleased to meet you." She lights me up with a beaming smile and says, "Great to meet you!! My name is Enis...it rhymes with penis." It turned out that she was one of the models for the Mercedes Benz Fashion Show. What an amazing race weekend!!

Thanks for your insights, as well! I love reading your writings!!

Cheers-mk

SO incredible!
I'm with you regarding following motorsport in the 60's, 70's and 80's....the majority of information and updates were in print (Autosport, National Speed Sport News, etc) which meant it took forever to receive racing results, etc. The only magazine I currently subscribe to is GP Racing (formerly F1 Racing) which is a UK publication.

In 1990 or 91, I sent a hand written note to Bob Varsha to recognize him for calling his 100th GP on ESPN TV....he typed (yes, a typewriter!) me a note thanking me.

I met Nigel Mansell in 1993 which was his first year in Indy Car. I drove down from Seattle to watch the Portland race. Nige had just won the 1992 F1 WDC and retired from F1 and came to the US to race Indy Car. I'm standing there in a Williams Racing hat and Williams Constructors t-shirt ....he looked at me and was a bit blown away to find a US fan "wearing his gear". Nige signed my hat! I had large eyebrows and a large moustache and a camera crew saw me in the pits and for a moment, thought I was Nigel....well that didn't last long.

Clarify your correspondence with the "TP's"....what is a TP?

There is a US lad that lives in the northeast and he frequents this site. He attended multiple USGP's at Watkins Glen.

Keep the correspondence coming.

[MKSixer]

Originally Posted by racerbruce

SO incredible!
I'm with you regarding following motorsport in the 60's, 70's and 80's....the majority of information and updates were in print (Autosport, National Speed Sport News, etc) which meant it took forever to receive racing results, etc. The only magazine I currently subscribe to is GP Racing (formerly F1 Racing) which is a UK publication.

In 1990 or 91, I sent a hand written note to Bob Varsha to recognize him for calling his 100th GP on ESPN TV....he typed (yes, a typewriter!) me a note thanking me.

I met Nigel Mansell in 1993 which was his first year in Indy Car. I drove down from Seattle to watch the Portland race. Nige had just won the 1992 F1 WDC and retired from F1 and came to the US to race Indy Car. I'm standing there in a Williams Racing hat and Williams Constructors t-shirt ....he looked at me and was a bit blown away to find a US fan "wearing his gear". Nige signed my hat! I had large eyebrows and a large moustache and a camera crew saw me in the pits and for a moment, thought I was Nigel....well that didn't last long.

Clarify your correspondence with the "TP's"....what is a TP?

There is a US lad that lives in the northeast and he frequents this site. He attended multiple USGP's at Watkins Glen.

Keep the correspondence coming.

I am smiling ear-to-ear now!!

You truly understand this sickness!! Meeting Nigel in those days must have been amazing. He was my brother's favorite driver! Speaking of, I forgot to mention Nelson Piquet, Sr. Loved him too.

TP is Team Principle.

Speaking of broadcasters, I met Leigh Diffey and Steve Matchett at a private museum event in Raleigh, NC years ago. Great and knowledgable guys...real fans of motorsport. We discussed Senna to great length. What a loss for all of us.

I was at quali for Indy in 2017 for ALOs first outing, as well. I was 100 meters away from the Bourdais crash. We could feel the heat from the fireball which resulted from the impact. My then-gf almost started crying on the spot.

Looking forward to returning to attending races next year.

[SenorFunkyPants]

Originally Posted by MKSixer

My fav drivers in chronological pretty much order were Hunt, Villeneuve, Lauda, Tambay, Senna, Hill, Coulthard, MSC and HAM. Love Norris, LEC and RIC now, as well.

I've been following F1 off and on for about 40 years since I was a kid.
Its one of those strange sports where as a fan you can have multiple "favourites".
I'm quite fickle as a fan...I started off liking MSC right up to the moment he nerfed Hill off in Australia to take his first DWC...then that was it for me.
I can't abide bad sportsmanship which in that case was really just cheating.
Similarish for Senna, a mesmerising driver but not really a very good sportsman.
I was really happy for Damon when he got his DWC, he seemed like a proper gent and a way better driver than he was given credit for. The way Williams and Head dumped him was disgraceful.
Of the current batch I like Ricciardo, Leclerc and Russell.
Leclerc in particular looks like the best driver currently in F1 whose name isn't Hamilton.
Can't abide Magnussen and Verstappen.

[MKSixer]

Originally Posted by SenorFunkyPants

I've been following F1 off and on for about 40 years since I was a kid.
Its one of those strange sports where as a fan you can have multiple "favourites".
I'm quite fickle as a fan...I started off liking MSC right up to the moment he nerfed Hill off in Australia to take his first DWC...then that was it for me.
I can't abide bad sportsmanship which in that case was really just cheating.
Similarish for Senna, a mesmerising driver but not really a very good sportsman.
I was really happy for Damon when he got his DWC, he seemed like a proper gent and a way better driver than he was given credit for. The way Williams and Head dumped him was disgraceful.
Of the current batch I like Ricciardo, Leclerc and Russell.
Leclerc in particular looks like the best driver currently in F1 whose name isn't Hamilton.
Can't abide Magnussen and Verstappen.

Good stuff!!

I try to like VER and I respect his talent but I grow cold when he opens his mouth as he did over this weekend. Sometimes the best response is silence.

Edit: I forgot to add that I think KMAG is a thug on the track.

[racerbruce]

Originally Posted by MKSixer

I am smiling ear-to-ear now!!

You truly understand this sickness!! Meeting Nigel in those days must have been amazing. He was my brother's favorite driver! Speaking of, I forgot to mention Nelson Piquet, Sr. Loved him too.

TP is Team Principle.

Speaking of broadcasters, I met Leigh Diffey and Steve Matchett at a private museum event in Raleigh, NC years ago. Great and knowledgable guys...real fans of motorsport. We discussed Senna to great length. What a loss for all of us.

I was at quali for Indy in 2017 for ALOs first outing, as well. I was 100 meters away from the Bourdais crash. We could feel the heat from the fireball which resulted from the impact. My then-gf almost started crying on the spot.

Looking forward to returning to attending races next year.

MKSixer -
Since you are the creator/originator of this thread, here's another racing story that you'll love

I've followed professional level drag racing for 50+ yrs; I've always dreamed of what it would be like to actually stand at the start line when the fastest accelerating vehicles on earth....LAUNCH; i was given this opportunity at the 2018 Pacific Northwest Nationals when the NHRA CRAZIES came to town....when I was allowed to be a guest on one of the Top Fuel Dragster teams for the entire weekend....as the dragster completed it's burnout to warm the tires and lay down a fresh patch of rubber (they back up and place the car in the tracks they just laid)....and the competitor's car did the same, my eyes were burning from the massive amounts of unburned nitromethane billowing out of the zoomie headers....I was wearing full-blown hearing protection...I was standing directly behind the beast and about 20 feet back....looking at the two packed parachutes and a rear wing that creates over 4,000 lbs of downforce when they achieve terminial velocity of appx 330 MPH....when the burnout to warm the tires occurred, i was hit by large amounts of micro-small rubber pellets that were being thrown off of the tires....and then, both beasts slowly rolled forward until the front bicycle-type wheels touched a light beam that brings on one blue light on the starting light "tree"....this is a pre-staged condition....and then the driver slowly rolls forward again (about 12 inches) until a second blue light is lit on the tree....at this point, the beast is perfectly staged....at this point, the NHRA Chief Starter pushes a button and the the appx 5 yellow lights on the tree turn on all at one time and it is exaclty 4/10's of a second until the green "go" light turns on....when the driver releases the hand brake lever and smashes the throttle and the beast moves, this breaks the light beam at the front wheels and the elapsed time count begins on how long it takes for the beast to break the light beam at the finish line, which provides the total Elapsed Time to cover the 1,000 ft; if the driver leaves before the green light turns on, a red light turns on on the tree which states you moved the car before the green light turned on and you are disqualified....back to my story of standing behind these beasts....I knew the sound and visceral excitement would be unbelievable, but I was not prepared for the massive NOISE and the massive CONCUSSION that occurred when both beasts launched....it was one of those nano-second moments in life when an explosion has occurred and your mlnd says you should run for your life in the opposite direction from where you are standing....the noise concussion and the massive amount of air concussion coming from the beast; it's impossible to explain how unreal it is to see a vehicle move that quickly from a starting line....it doesn't seem possible; the story gets more adrenalin-insane when the car I was with that weekend got to the finish line at appx 320 MPH AND BOTH PARACHUTES DID NOT OPEN....you really can't see the deceleration area and wasn't sure if the driver got the beast slowed down before running off into the last-chance sand trap....the carbon/carbon rear brakes (no brakes on the front wheels) got the beast stopped before disaster at the deceleration end of the track....I'll never forget this experience.

[MKSixer]

Wow!!!

Your experience parallels mine, exactly but for the near disaster at the end. I was invited by a client to attend a race in Charlotte several years ago as their CEO sponsored a team. Like you, I had access, full hearing protection and got to stand behind the lines for the start. They were shooting 4 up at this time.

Nothing can prepare you for this.

I'm fairly certain I was having heart palpitations from the vibrations the cars caused. I experienced everything you described. It was nerve wracking in the extreme. I've never felt unsafe at any race track until this time. It gave me the heebie-jeebies the entire time I was back there. I lasted 4 races then decided to go to the finish line and "enjoy" the race. Nope. Not enjoyable. A car passing by at 330 MPH was not fun for me.

Great and unique experience...but I'll never do it again!!

Have you been back since then?

[racerbruce]

Originally Posted by MKSixer

Wow!!!

Your experience parallels mine, exactly but for the near disaster at the end. I was invited by a client to attend a race in Charlotte several years ago as their CEO sponsored a team. Like you, I had access, full hearing protection and got to stand behind the lines for the start. They were shooting 4 up at this time.

Nothing can prepare you for this.

I'm fairly certain I was having heart palpitations from the vibrations the cars caused. I experienced everything you described. It was nerve wracking in the extreme. I've never felt unsafe at any race track until this time. It gave me the heebie-jeebies the entire time I was back there. I lasted 4 races then decided to go to the finish line and "enjoy" the race. Nope. Not enjoyable. A car passing by at 330 MPH was not fun for me.

Great and unique experience...but I'll never do it again!!

Have you been back since then?

You have first-hand experience to know/feel the insanity of a Top Fuel Dragster accelerating 0-100 MPH in 0.7 seconds (7/10ths)....it just surreal to see a car that goes 0-330 MPH in 3.7 seconds....in just 1,000 feet!!!!. And....you were at a 4-wide event where they launch 4 of these beasts....I haven't seen a 4 wide event and it must be insane to see 4 each 12,000 HP Top Fuel Dragsters launching!

I have; I go to Fri quali every year when the NHRA professionals come to the Great Pacific Northwest....at Pacific Raceways https://pacificraceways.com/ This is an incredible road course with significant elevation change, drag strip, HPDE venue, etc. I've been here for the annual vintage races and have seen Sir Jackie Stewart's Tyrell F1 machine in action! Oh, the sound of the Ford Cosworth V8 at redline....

My annual trek to see the Crazy Boys & Girls (aka Top Fuel Nitromethane "cars") is awesome. I have developed a close relationship with Antron Brown, one of the drivers in Top Fuel Dragster and he has won the National Championship 3 times https://antronbrown.com/ Antron invites me into his pits and into the transporter and I have a close-up chance to watch the team rebuild the engine between each round of racing, which consists of removing the supercharger, both heads, the oil pan, the 8 pistons, the 6 disc clutch, install new parts, re-assemble, re-pack the two parachutes, mix and pour in the nitromethane fuel, start the engine, set the timing, etc....and all of this is completed in 40 MINUTES....it's mechanical acrobats diving on the car and performing world-class skills.

[fanatic1]

Originally Posted by racerbruce

You have first-hand experience to know/feel the insanity of a Top Fuel Dragster accelerating 0-100 MPH in 0.7 seconds (7/10ths)....it just surreal to see a car that goes 0-330 MPH in 3.7 seconds....in just 1,000 feet!!!!. And....you were at a 4-wide event where they launch 4 of these beasts....I haven't seen a 4 wide event and it must be insane to see 4 each 12,000 HP Top Fuel Dragsters launching!

I have; I go to Fri quali every year when the NHRA professionals come to the Great Pacific Northwest....at Pacific Raceways https://pacificraceways.com/ This is an incredible road course with significant elevation change, drag strip, HPDE venue, etc. I've been here for the annual vintage races and have seen Sir Jackie Stewart's Tyrell F1 machine in action! Oh, the sound of the Ford Cosworth V8 at redline....

My annual trek to see the Crazy Boys & Girls (aka Top Fuel Nitromethane "cars") is awesome. I have developed a close relationship with Antron Brown, one of the drivers in Top Fuel Dragster and he has won the National Championship 3 times https://antronbrown.com/ Antron invites me into his pits and into the transporter and I have a close-up chance to watch the team rebuild the engine between each round of racing, which consists of removing the supercharger, both heads, the oil pan, the 8 pistons, the 6 disc clutch, install new parts, re-assemble, re-pack the two parachutes, mix and pour in the nitromethane fuel, start the engine, set the timing, etc....and all of this is completed in 40 MINUTES....it's mechanical acrobats diving on the car and performing world-class skills.

Great stories guys, thanks for sharing.

Had an uncle take me to a quarter mile event when I was maybe eight or nine years old. The only thing I remember was the oxygen getting sucked out of my lungs! And maybe eyes watering too.

[MKSixer]

Originally Posted by racerbruce

You have first-hand experience to know/feel the insanity of a Top Fuel Dragster accelerating 0-100 MPH in 0.7 seconds (7/10ths)....it just surreal to see a car that goes 0-330 MPH in 3.7 seconds....in just 1,000 feet!!!!. And....you were at a 4-wide event where they launch 4 of these beasts....I haven't seen a 4 wide event and it must be insane to see 4 each 12,000 HP Top Fuel Dragsters launching!

I have; I go to Fri quali every year when the NHRA professionals come to the Great Pacific Northwest....at Pacific Raceways https://pacificraceways.com/ This is an incredible road course with significant elevation change, drag strip, HPDE venue, etc. I've been here for the annual vintage races and have seen Sir Jackie Stewart's Tyrell F1 machine in action! Oh, the sound of the Ford Cosworth V8 at redline....

My annual trek to see the Crazy Boys & Girls (aka Top Fuel Nitromethane "cars") is awesome. I have developed a close relationship with Antron Brown, one of the drivers in Top Fuel Dragster and he has won the National Championship 3 times https://antronbrown.com/ Antron invites me into his pits and into the transporter and I have a close-up chance to watch the team rebuild the engine between each round of racing, which consists of removing the supercharger, both heads, the oil pan, the 8 pistons, the 6 disc clutch, install new parts, re-assemble, re-pack the two parachutes, mix and pour in the nitromethane fuel, start the engine, set the timing, etc....and all of this is completed in 40 MINUTES....it's mechanical acrobats diving on the car and performing world-class skills.

Fantastic!

You are spot on about the mechanics! Each engine broken down and rebuilt in lightening time. It was one of the most amazing (and safe) things I've ever seen. I got so much respect for them from learning about the sport and what they accomplish.

Formula One and LeMans are my first loves but I'm always open to attending other disciplines of racing. I've even been to the Talladega 500. Quite interesting!!

[yco]

anything i d say seems like already has been posted.. great posts cheers!

[MKSixer]

Meanwhile Hamilton haters are busy...

[M5Rick]

Originally Posted by ///M Power-Belgium

My friend there is great news ! The latest !
Think this is the right place to post it...

Swap Cars ?

MAX to Hamilton during the press conference: « We swap cars. You go into mine, I go into yours then we know the comparison ?

I think it's a reasonable request from Max but of course the Max haters join the two chickens in Brackley in worrying that HAM's car may be scratched how unsporting.

[yco]

Max and Lewis fancy each other more in real life than the debate over here..

[M5Rick]

Originally Posted by yco

anything i d say seems like already has been posted.. great posts cheers!

My friend,how about HAM and Max swap their CURRENT cars for a comparison of who is the best driver.

[///M Power-Belgium]

Originally Posted by MKSixer

Meanwhile Hamilton haters are busy...

My friend . No hate here vs HAM .I even said congrats for the GOAT !
You said to me thank you to be sporty...That's really nice from you !

As for us the MAX fans , our issue is that we can't battle we equal machinery..
As you know the Merc has the most powerful PU of the field . DAS , the suspicious party-mode, tire cooling , and other hidden inventions ...

Regarding sporty : The advantage of the Merc is actually not sporty , as we can see It's always a Merc vs Merc race ...
Only MAX can (sometimes) split the Mercs and win a race ..
Only MAX can do it with less , and lack of HP . The other cars of the field having zero chance , and they know this the whole season !

I really wonder , why the others teams still participate because actually they look like fools ,idiots behind the steering wheel while the costs are hundreds of millions !

The Merc dominance my friend . That's the issue of the other teams and from us MAX fans !

Regarding the challenge from MAX . Let use hope that HAM and Toto agreed to swap cars .
It would show what are worth . Both of them !
And not only to test drive with a Merc from 2018..

As I said : I won't happen . Sadly !
Cheers my friend !

[///M Power-Belgium]

Originally Posted by yco

Max and Lewis fancy each other more in real life than the debate over here..

That's what they show in front of the cams mate ...
On the track , MAX would love to get a dogfight with the Mercs .
Sadly as you know ,MAX has a lack of HP ..to beat the Mercs !

I already knew from at the Eifel , that MAX would challenge HAM to swap cars ..
Hope HAM has the b@lls to do it !

Otherwise HAM shows he's actually chicken...