GPWizard F1 Forum
F1 News & Discussions => General F1 Discussion => Topic started by: Monty on December 01, 2020, 09:16:06 AM
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So one record will not get broken this weekend :o
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so Hulk goes from the 2019 Merc to the 2020 Merc?
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They're talking about George Russell, which would be pretty cool!
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George Russell confirmed.
What a fantastic opportunity. However, he will get hammered - if he does well the pundits will say 'well anyone can do well in that car' and if he doesn't do well the pundits will say 'he clearly has no talent because he should have done well in that car'!!
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I think it depends more on how well he does compared to Bottas.
As nice as Bottas is, he's simply not good enough to be in a Mercedes in my opinion. I wish they would put someone in the car who can actually challenge Hamilton. Verstappen would be great, but there are others as well. I know teams don't like this as it creates unnecessary friction, but at the moment it looks to easy for Hamilton.
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I think it depends more on how well he does compared to Bottas.
As nice as Bottas is, he's simply not good enough to be in a Mercedes in my opinion. I wish they would put someone in the car who can actually challenge Hamilton. Verstappen would be great, but there are others as well. I know teams don't like this as it creates unnecessary friction, but at the moment it looks to easy for Hamilton.
Always hard to say for sure what would happen in 'what if' situations, but mostly Hamilton out performs Bottas by 100ths of a second with superb qualifying sessions. A driver even slightly slower than Hamilton would be starting behind Bottas, which would translate into more race wins for Bottas, and considering he's already #2, that's a lot more points he'd earn without Hamilton.
I think the greatest differentiator between Lewis and Valtteri is the mental toughness, the same mental toughness that Nico Rosberg didn't want to fight. I think that a 'softer' team mate would give Bottas a little more edge (how many seasons have we had a strong Bottas start fall off quickly?)
Bottom line, I think that Hamilton is a poor teammate for Bottas to race with*, and any other teammate, including Max or LeClerc, you'd see a stronger Bottas.
*even though Bottas isn't going to win a championship racing alongside Hamilton at Mercedes, still the best place he could be.
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It might also help prove that Hamilton's driving skills have as much to do with Merc's success as does the quality of their car.
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It might also help prove that Hamilton's driving skills have as much to do with Merc's success as does the quality of their car.
I agree - Mercedes had developed a fantastic engine at the former Ilmor plant in Brixworth but they had no experience in Chassis design. Hamilton joined what had been a massively under-funded Brawn team and I believe he was fundamental to the development of what became the dominant F1 car. Partner teams prove it isn't just the power plant that makes Mercedes successful; it is the combination of chassis, power plant and driver. Hamilton must be given due credit for his part in the car development and the fact that he is the fastest driver in all conditions.
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Hamilton says he lost 4 kilos while he was sick and 6 kilos over the last 3 races. A lot of it was muscle and could explain why he was lackluster at the last race.
https://www.racefans.net/2020/12/21/hamilton-reveals-he-lost-four-kilos-after-contracting-covid-19/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+f1fanatic+%28RaceFans+-+Independent+Motorsport+Coverage%29 (https://www.racefans.net/2020/12/21/hamilton-reveals-he-lost-four-kilos-after-contracting-covid-19/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+f1fanatic+%28RaceFans+-+Independent+Motorsport+Coverage%29)
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Lewis was exhausted after his last race and it was obvious as he stood to be interviewed. He most likely thought he was in good enough condition and great physical shape to be able to come back as fast as he did and get it the car for the last race. Not so.
He should have let George have another go and really show how bad Bottas is.
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He should have let George have another go and really show how bad Bottas is.
He wasn't likely do that if he's planning on staying at Merc next year, he'd want Bottas to stay in 2nd seat.
I'm sure he prefers the team mate he knows he can best to a young charger who may make his all time record 8th championship bid a lot harder.