planetf1.com

Well he does make top 10 in just about any all time best F1 drivers list these days so I don't think he is deprived of any honor. Even before 2012 he was generally considered the best in F1 but last year really opened everyone's eyes. People have started to realize that you can criticize Alonso the person all day long but Alonso the driver is just way too good.

_________________

_________________

Who knows why and how. McLaren forced Hamilton once (or twice if we take Spygate into account, although not easy to prove) to withheld information to the stewards (and the FIA) so it's not hard to believe. In Australia 2009 they used Hamilton's team manager as a scapegoat as Fernando Alonso was driving for another team and couldn't serve to that purpose

McLaren is extremely corporate and they are always very concerned over their image. But confidentiality is not a crime and IMO its harsh to beat them up over it.

McLaren did plenty wrong in '07 and they got their 100M penalty. But as a fan I have long been at peace with the fact that Alonso did some wrong things that year as well. He paid for that too - 2 years with under performing Renault. So my advice is that lets not open up old wounds

_________________

No bash intented =) Just curious about some facts that will eventually be brought to light, just for the sake of truth.

I believe I'm generally well grounded and unbiased in my appreciation of the talent on show in F1.
I am well aware of the great talent and skill that Hamilton, Vettel, Raikkonen, Button, etc. have in their possession.

But it absolutely baffles me that people can argue that Fernando Alonso is not the best out there at this moment in time.

They fall back on the same crutches time and time again - "Hamilton beat him in '07 (with the exact same number of points)", "he needs a No. 2 to succeed", "throws toys out of the pram". It's all nonsense and I sometimes think I'm watching a completely different sport.

When I see Alonso drive on a Sunday afternoon I honestly believe I'm watching the master at work.
The Da Vinci of F1 crafting his art.

In my eyes he proved he was the best F1 driver of this generation in 2006. And he has repeatedly proved me right ever since.

Back in the day I was the biggest Michael Schumacher detractor on the planet. I looked for every excuse I could to put him down. He cheated in '94, he took drivers out of races, he needed the backing of an entire team and subservient teammate, he had his own custom made tyres, he nearly put his own brother in a wall at their home GP and so on... but secretly I knew he was the best, I could never admit it.

And that is my view on Alonso right now. He is simply the best. It's easy to hate on him but very difficult to not appreciate his undeniable talent behind the wheel of an F1 car.



(apologies for the rant, I'm done now)

_________________
"I am a believer, but I start each Grand Prix with 195 liters of fuel behind me," he explains. "I don't rely entirely on God, I rely on Prost."

. That's the thing about Alonso and his detractors. They always nit pick and find flaws with Alonso as a person. But they can't find flaws with his driving ability.

_________________
Forza Fernando !

Alonso has now reached the stage where I no longer feel the need to defend him every time someone criticizes him, although I do participate once in a while just because I love coming to PF1. The question of who the best driver of the generation is has been answered. Now I just want him to win races and championships so I can celebrate.

_________________

_________________

Interesting point guys, separating both sides of him, personality and driving skills.

What annoys me is that some people expect one to hail Vettel or Kimi and if you don't so then you are an Alonso fanboy! I actually don't like praising drivers nor critisizing them, I just don't like the Raikkonen Youth or the Vettelanian Inquisition xD

It is the same with all fans. Alonso loyalists feel you should bow down to him as well, or else you are just a troll. I prefer Vettel and Raikkonen and I agree one doesn't have to troll the rest - but you have to admit to a certian level of sensitivity among some fans in every sport. You can't say a driver's hair looked funny in a photo without someone giving you the 3 degree and asking to see your troll license.

_________________

I don't think such a generalization is fair for any fanbase, well...maybe with the exception of the Kimi fanbase which really is very uncompromising and expressive. But generally "bowing down" is not necessary; its criticism and comparison that usually produces the heated arguments.

But yes, as you said fans can be sensitive. We all have certain things we like to hold on to (about the favorite driver) and if that is taken away we become aggressive.

_________________

Whilst I said "some people are integrist" bourbon19 said "you Alonso fans think...", I agree with callMEcrazy's point that making generalizations is not a correct thing. I just don't care what other people like or believe, I am not a Fernando fanboy and I don't like Ferrari too much, without him I'd find F1 much more boring, hence my mild support to him, I am actually an anti-Alonso detractor.

Let's not talk about the Kimi fan base in an Alonso thread. It never ends well.

Mod Blue.

_________________
"You are the universe expressing itself as a Human for a little while..."

Fernando thinks Hamilton is the " strongest driver" as opponent
http://www.f1zone.net/news/alonso-think ... um=twitter
“But as for strongest opponent, who is strongest driver? My answer is Hamilton. It was true last year, it was true this year.”

“It is a personal opinion, not political, not to make people think something. Who is the strongest opponent, the strongest driver on grid? Who is the one you have to keep an eye on? It is Hamilton – and it will still be Hamilton next year.”

_________________
"Everything you can imagine is real." Pablo Picasso

He's playing mind games with Vettel.

_________________
1994 1995 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

He isn't
“It is a personal opinion, not political, not to make people think something. "
He also lauds Vettel.

_________________
"Everything you can imagine is real." Pablo Picasso

Some pretty honest comments from Alonso. He didn't say Hamilton was his main rival owing to machinary constraints but he acknowledges him as the strongest driver on the grid, which if you exclude Alonso himself would be the opinion of the majority of F1 followers and pundits.



Quite.

_________________
We want heroes, but there are few, mainly it's cars - Pedro De La Rosa

Off course he is, he knows that Sebastian is the man to beat next year also. Don't think it affects Vettel though.

Maybe it does affect Vettel, maybe it doesn't. Its a free shot, so definitely worth having a go.

But in defense of Alonso, Hamilton is highly trained in martial arts...so there's definitely a case for him being the strongest.

_________________

The fact that he has to say the statement is not political speaks for itself IMO.

_________________
Räikkönen - Vettel - Rosberg - Bottas

Indeed.

He's also putting pressure on Hamilton to be the threat. Mind games.

_________________
1994 1995 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

lol he can't win no matter what he says. If he had named Hamilton without making clear he wasn't being political, people would have followed the Marko line that he was being political with his choice. Instead, he makes it clear he wasn't being political and people still say he is being political.

To be honest, I don't think Alonso was ever playing mind games last season. I believe that he was just making clear that his Ferrari couldn't beat the RBR hence talking up Newey etc and in doing so was inferring that if he didn't win, it was not going to be down to him as a driver but rather their respective machinery (and to be honest, it's hard to disagree).

I personally don't doubt for a second that Alonso feels Hamilton is the best driver, in fact, putting Alonso to one side I would go as far as to say that RBR feel the same (even Marko with his 'the faster driver is not the best' schtick).

_________________
We want heroes, but there are few, mainly it's cars - Pedro De La Rosa

I wonder what kind of commentary has Alonso to do so as to nobody can label them as political xD

He very well knows who he has to beat to get the title back and it sure isn't Lewis he is aiming for 2013.
Hamilton is capable but he has been left in the dust by Sebastian for 3 years in a row now.

He acknowledged that in saying he won't be his 'main rival', but he was asked who he felt was the strongest driver.


If you like he has been "left in the dust" by Webber for 3 of the last 4 seasons too...does that make Webber superior also? (rhetorical question, I'm a fan of both but I know who is better).

_________________
We want heroes, but there are few, mainly it's cars - Pedro De La Rosa

Who said anything about "superior"? Vettel is the one to beat right now, and has so been for the last 3 years, I don't belive Alonso cares about anything else.

Vettel is the man that all drivers on the grid are looking to beat right now, or at least he should be. Focusing on anyone else other than the lead driver in the top team would just be silly. Always aim for the top (i.e. where Seb sits)

_________________
"You are the universe expressing itself as a Human for a little while..."

It's not like he came out randomly and said it, he answered a question in front of an audience at Wroom, hardly mind games considering he still complemented Vettel saying he deserves his titles and that he had moments that he was better than everyone else too. Besides, I highly doubt Vettel even gives a shit when he sees Hamilton and Alonso praising each other anyway.

Oh, for God's sake! His reference to it being an opinion and not political is very obviusly a reply to Helmut Marko's recent comments, about which he was directly asked in that press conference. And yes, he likes Hamilton better than Vettel. So? Isn't he entitled to an opinion different to that of those who think Vettel is better than Hamilton?

Trying to read a double meaning in every single little comment that an F1 driver makes is going to drive all of us crazy even before the new season starts...

"GOING TO" drive us all crazy? The option has come and gone my friend.

_________________
"You are the universe expressing itself as a Human for a little while..."

Morgana you don't have to get defensive over everything everyone says about Alonso when he talks about Hamilton or Vettel.

It is mind games. It's always mind games with these guys. Alonso knows full well saying Hamilton is his biggest threat outs pressure on Lewis to prove he is exactly that in 2013. There's nothing wrong with it and I never said Alonsonwas the bad guy for doing so.

Also we don't know he likes Hamilton better than Vettel. They are both rivals. I doubt Alonso cares about either frankly. But when he can he'll wind them up and or put pressure on them. Every top driver does that. I'd be worried if they didn't.

_________________
1994 1995 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

Post of the day!!!!

Alonso also said end of 2011 , Hamilton will be the man to watch out 2012. He thought he would be very strong 2012...And he was right about it
Not everything is mindgames or something political. It was Alonsos opinion at this time and he was right about it.

_________________
"Everything you can imagine is real." Pablo Picasso

I wasn't replying to you Haribo.

_________________
1994 1995 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

First and foremost, I'd say that given the constant attacks to Alonso in the forum somebody has to get defensive on his behalf!

Secondly, in this case I am not getting particularly defensive: I am honestly baffled at people assuming that every word that comes out of these guys's mouths has a double meaning which is intended at unsettling a rival. So a driver, in this case Alonso, is asked about who he thinks is his biggest rival: whatever he says, people assume that he is not simply answering the question, but trying to achieve some obscure goals in terms of psychological warfare - even when we are still a couple of months away from the beginning of the season.

I think that things are much simpler: in 90% of the cases, these guys simply answer what they think, just tarnishing their thoughts with a PR veil. And in Alonso's case, I don't see why people cannot accept that he may simply believe that Hamilton is his strongest rival, instead of coming back with the "it cannot be, it must be mind games".

Laura, you say that you do not know if he likes Hamilton better than Vettel; the reason you do not know is because you refuse to accept that when he publicly states, as he has already done a few times in the past, that he prefers Hamilton he is telling the truth. Well, with that attitude you will never know anything about the guy!

I am happy to accept that Alonso thinks Hamilton is stronger than Vettel and that he thinks that the best driver of the whole bunch he has met is Robert Kubica. It is not as if he were saying something outrageous, he is just expressing his opinion. I may agree or disagree with him, but I don't think he is trying to play any type of mind games - even if his words get Helmut Marko in a frenzy!

Finally, another example: when asked at the beginning of the past season which of the 5 WDC in the grid was the most dangerous rival, Alonso said that it had to be Schumacher, given his track record. People thought he was playing mind games with all the other WDCs; I just thought that it was a simple way to reply to the question while being absolutely neutral and politically correct. And by the way, I also thought that Schumacher deserved that compliment.

I think that you are very right indeed!

Well, I was never particularly balanced, so in my case it won't show too much

Morgana, you always get over defensive regarding Alonso. For the slightest thing.

There was nothing wrong with what he said and why he perhaps said it. It's all part of F1. There was no need for you to jump in and defend him because no one was attacking him. Alonso isn't the bane of the forum anymore.

_________________
1994 1995 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

Do you realize that he was in a press conference answering a journalist question?

I wonder if Alonso would have said Vettel or Kimi is the strongest driver, he would have been applauded for it, & it would have been taken as a gospel. Looks like Alonso gave an answer wich does not fit in somes view.

_________________
"Everything you can imagine is real." Pablo Picasso