Schumi throws in towel for the second time

[Dare]

I'm going to miss him,F1 won'tbe
the same again

[Irisado]

His comeback was a mistake in my view, as he was never going to be as good as he had been.  I also disagree with the majority here that it's a sad occasion, as I've never really had much time for his attitude when it came to chopping people at the start, forcing other drivers off the track, and benefiting from Ferrari's preferential treatment at the hands of the FIA during the Todt era.

[Monty]

His comeback was a mistake in my view, as he was never going to be as good as he had been.  I also disagree with the majority here that it's a sad occasion, as I've never really had much time for his attitude when it came to chopping people at the start, forcing other drivers off the track, and benefiting from Ferrari's preferential treatment at the hands of the FIA during the Todt era

  This isn't me posting under a different name....honest.
But I really have to agree 

[cosworth151]

I still have mixed feelings about Schumacher. Great talent but ultimately a dirty driver, sort of F1's Dale Earnhardt Sr. Still, I'm glad for the times I got to watch him race in person.

[romephius]

I'm prepared for the beating I will get for the following statement....

Schumacher is no worse than Senna, both were extrememly aggessive to the dangerous end of the scale, both have caused accidents to win... they are as dirty as eachother, but, for some reason Senna is a 'real' racer and legend in his own right, but, Schumacher is just a dirty driver?  Is it just because Senna died (don't speak ill of the dead)?  Both are dirty and both were larger than life personalities within the sport.  So, either both of them are legendary drivers, or, both are dirty drivers.  In my world it can't be something there is a double standard applied to.

[lkjohnson1950]

I think they were both. I never liked either of them, but I grew up with racing during a time when an accident was a 50/50 chance of a death. I think people do defer to Senna because he is dead. I watched that race and that car looked unstable right from the start. But also, I think people respect Senna as a huge talent, whereas MS was talented but achieved his success more through hard work and equipment advantages. Senna won in less competitive cars and Schu really hasn't.

[Willy]

You are not wrong with that statement Rom.

Senna was a talent for sure but he had a real attitude off track and felt that he should be treated differently then ordinary drivers.
Schumi can be very dirty in the car but does not appear to have the same attitude as Senna did out of the car.
And it doesn't matter if he is dead, if he was an asshole he should be called one.

[vintly]

Senna had a heart.
Schumacher has a swinging brick.

[John S]

I'm prepared for the beating I will get for the following statement....

Schumacher is no worse than Senna, both were extrememly aggessive to the dangerous end of the scale, both have caused accidents to win... they are as dirty as eachother, but, for some reason Senna is a 'real' racer and legend in his own right, but, Schumacher is just a dirty driver?  Is it just because Senna died (don't speak ill of the dead)?  Both are dirty and both were larger than life personalities within the sport.  So, either both of them are legendary drivers, or, both are dirty drivers.  In my world it can't be something there is a double standard applied to.

Totally agree with that Rom.   

I've never personaly subscribed to the exhalted status that Senna is given, he was a great driver but for my money Prost was his equal, albeit with a different style. With Schumi however he too is great but has not had an equal that lasted the course of his championship years.

We have discussed many times how it's impossible to be objective about the comparitive merits of drivers from different eras, however it's possible to recognise over aggressive driving styles from any era, Ayrton and Michael, along with Niki Lauda, all fit the bill for me. 

 

[Irisado]

The reason why I place Senna above Schumacher is because he a world championship when fighting against a world class team mate (Prost), and Schumacher did not.

Schumacher's championships at Ferrari also benefited from the team's cushy relationship with the FIA and Bridgestone.

[cosworth151]

Senna and Prost sort of remind me of Buddy Holly and Bill Hailey. Both were at the top of their profession at the same time. Contemporary sources rate them about equal. Holly died young, tragically at the height of his career. Hailey lived on into retirement. Now, Holly is idolized and Hailey is all but forgotten.

Was Senna really that much better than Prost?

[rmassart]

I'm prepared for the beating I will get for the following statement....

Schumacher is no worse than Senna, both were extrememly aggessive to the dangerous end of the scale, both have caused accidents to win... they are as dirty as eachother, but, for some reason Senna is a 'real' racer and legend in his own right, but, Schumacher is just a dirty driver?  Is it just because Senna died (don't speak ill of the dead)?  Both are dirty and both were larger than life personalities within the sport.  So, either both of them are legendary drivers, or, both are dirty drivers.  In my world it can't be something there is a double standard applied to.

The thing about Senna is that he displayed a passion which Schumacher simply does not. I am sure they were equally passionate about F1. But Senna is your Brazilian, "I have no choice" driven by God personality whereas Schumi is your "cold" Germanic perfectionist.  The former makes for better stardom...

Having said that, it's also a sign of the times. I find none of the current batch of drivers truly inspiring.  They may be great drivers, but they display almost no emotion. Perhaps only Hamilton and Alonso display some emotion on the track.

Go back to the 80s and you had Mansell, Senna, Prost, Piquet, Lauda, Berger and they all sweated these races to the bitter end (in Mansell's case literally, or that time when Prost tried to push his car over the line in Germany '86!). Perhaps I was just more impressionable back then (aged 10) but when a driver gets out of the car in Parc Ferme these days, he looks like he could go on to run a marathon...