Jenson's Understeer wrote:
Exediron wrote:
Mercedes already has a top driver, one who is believed to be interested in a new contract after 2018. They've shown previously that they're not interested in putting another top driver alongside Lewis, so why would they mess with what's already working?
Each 'top' driver is a different set of circumstances, though. You can write off a Hamilton/Alonso partnership at Mercedes, and most probably a Hamilton/Vettel one, too. Would Max Verstappen fit alongside Lewis? I don't think so. He's phenomenally talented on the track and has age on his side, but he/his father are developing a nasty habit of throwing their toys out the pram a little, and it does feel (at least to me) that if it were Hamilton vs. Verstappen for the WDC, you've got a lot of potential for it to combust.
Daniel Ricciardo, on the other hand, is potentially available at the end of next year, would be a clear upgrade on Bottas and has co-existed with his teammates to date. Of course, that hasn't been under the pressure of a situation where he and his teammate are in direct competition for the WDC, but of the four 'top' drivers he seems like the one who would cause the least issues alongside Lewis. Certainly, if I were making that decision and Ricciardo was available, I'd have no qualms about pairing those two, and would be a lot more confident in the mood remaining positive than I would with Hamilton alongside Vettel/Alonso/Verstappen.
I broadly agree, except that I'd say the drivers who are most likely to have issues with competitive team mates would be Hamilton and Alonso only. So far I haven't seen Verstappen having notable issues with Ricciardo (well, none that immediately spring to mind), while Vettel seemed to take his beating by Ricciardo fairly equanimously. I know Max and Sainz famously didn't get on, but not entirely sure who was the originator there.
I think both Alonso and Hamilton need to have team mates who don't threaten them, while the others haven't really shown that to be the case (although that said a case could be made for Verstappen because of his relationship with Sainz). So I don't see a partnership between Alonso and Hamilton working, but one of the other three with them might work, although I still think it would be a headache. Mercedes seem far better off sticking with a Hamilton/Bottas scenario, where Bottas is clearly inferior and apparently apolitical, while still being quick enough to steal points off competitors. Kimi fits the first two criteria at Ferrari, for example, but he's not consistently doing the the latter point. The only probable issue with that scenario, of course, is succession planning...
Alonso and Hamilton have gone up against a superior line-up of drivers than the others. Massa and Kimi are the only drivers on the grid to have gone up against an even better line-up of drivers
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
Probably right, but details look too soft. Nothing from Honda, Mclaren or STR.
