Lewis Hamilton - A critical deconstruction of the different Camps in F1 regarding him

Dear Friends,

I stumbled across this on another site and thought the poster did a good job in classifying the different types of reactions LH brings out in people.

It's quite a fascinating read and I found myself agreeing with almost every word; so what camp do you belong to. I didn't post the link because it's from another forum, don't want to annoy the admins

"Look, there are variety of camps regarding Lewis Hamilton;

1) Hamilton fans who appreciate his abilities and aren't afraid to criticise him when he gets it wrong (balanced Hamilton fan)

2) Hamilton fans who think he's the best thing since sliced bread and can never admit he is at fault for anything (Fanboys who are a serious problem)

3) Anti-Hamilton fans who will never ever praise him for anything and despise him for in their minds getting a top drive in a Mclaren is unfair because he didn't come through a small team. They forget he had an extended stint in the lower series before entering F1. They also hate him for not living in the UK whilst forgetting that until recently JB didn't live in the UK and most F1 drivers live abroad. (They are called the anti-Hamilton brigade)

4) The people who just can't stand the fact that a black man is in F1 and were slating Hamilton for bringing black music stars to the sport because P Diddy and Jay Z were at a grand prix, forgetting that these guys have been following the sport before Hamilton's emergence. They slate him even when the weather is bad. It's all his fault (These people are of course bigotted and racist but will never admit it)

5) The people who do not like some of his petulant antics and his perceived arrogance, They are not exactly anti-hamilton but will never miss the opportunity to stick the knife in (They are the waiting to bash Hamilton brigade)

6) The fans who will never forgive him for beating Alonso at Mclaren and will blame him for Alonso leaving the team forgetting that all Hamilton did was refuse to be a lap dog like some of Alonso's team mates. They also forget that Alonso played a huge role in getting himself thrown out of the team. They will blame Hamilton for it as Alonso is their idol (They aren't exactly Alonso fans because their hatred for Hamilton is more than their love for Alonso who is arguably the best driver on the grid)

7) The Fan of F1 who may like some drivers more than the others but treats them all with decency and respect and is a fan of the sport first and will applaud anyone who does a great job and who will slate anyone who does stupid things (Balanced F1 fan)

I believe I belong to group 7, from the posts on here its easy to put the posters on here and on other sites into these groups.

Enjoy the sport, appreciate the drivers, they entertain us at a great risk to their lives and put this ridiculous bickering to rest."


I agree with the last paragraph. I believe I'm in group 7 as well

How on earth can you claim to class yourself as a 7 when your calling double WDC Vettel a 'Crash Kid'? Most recently you were saying how the Crash Kid had returned - even when the incident was not his fault.

You are a number 2 and you know it

Alessandro, I criticise everyone. Hamilton included. Look at my posting history on this site.

Vettel was dubbed the crash kid by Martin Whitmarsh. Some of the accidents Vettel has caused are spectacular and no one comes close to him apart from Hamilton running into Kimi in the pit lane when the red lights were on.

I praise everyone in equal measure and do not feel the need to constantly slate one individual who beat my idol, like you do.

As for you, you are a mixture of 3, 5 and 6. Your posting history, articles and numerous aliases confirm this.

It's clear to everyone

Funny you should say that AC as i thought of you immediately when readings #3 - dont dare deny it But also would fit into 5 & 6

Id class myself as #1 but v occasionally boarder line #2

Come on lets all be honest.

I'm a 1 and a 7.

I might add im a 7 also.

There's so many people I know who when you ask them why they dislike Hamilton there reply is 'erm....uh, just don't like him' lol! So many people fit into 5!

I will openly admit I was a 2 for a while for one reason. F1 was in a dire situation and not only was the racing boring and repetitive but there was no driver at that time who stood out and showed so much raw talent and sheer speed as Hamilton did when he entered the sport. He wasnt afraid to challenge the big guns and beating them just emphasised what great ability this young guy had. Over the years, I've definitely changed my opinions on Hamilton and I would definitely say I have argued for him and openly criticised him when he's been poor. I would classify myself in 1 & 7.

In general its 1 and 7 for me but do admit to occasionally falling into 2 when the 3s and 5s are off on one.

I'd love to see Alessandro do one of these articles for his beloved Nando.

Back to the actual racing, what does everyone think about Lewis Hamilton's new racing approach this season?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/17629978

Of course consistency is the key to winning the world title and in the long term it will benefit him but I love watching the old Lewis Hamilton actually racing and putting you on the edge of your seat. In my opinion watching Lewis in Australia and Malaysia was boring, is it a trend most of the 'exciting drivers' are going to follow in an era of managing the tyres. I'm hoping for a really exciting race in China because so far has been slightly disappointing. Thoughts?

How can you race hard and conserve tyres at the same time ? That's what DRS attempts to mask. As I've said on here before IMO too much tyre management is spoiling the wheel to wheel stuff. Aussie this year was a typical example where Hami whilst trying to regain 2nd place had to drop off Vettel after 3 or 4 laps and nurse his tyres home - robbing us of a grandstand finish. Expect more of the same for the rest of the season.

Agreed, tyre management is becomign the be all and end all -which is wrong imo. Still thats the way it is so im glad to hear Lewis having a head on his shoulders and taking a different approach this time round.

lets be honest, we'd hate to see him use his tyres up fighting one driver to then struggle and potentially fall down the field. Im going to watch how he copes with other races

I miss the bridgestone tyres. What is the point of racing if you can't drive a car to its limit?

Tyre conservation is for families with sensible saloons, not the peak of motor racing.

Belgarion of Riva wrote:I miss the bridgestone tyres. What is the point of racing if you can't drive a car to its limit?

Tyre conservation is for families with sensible saloons, not the peak of motor racing.

Whats the point in having motor racing where the cars are so evenly matched that overtaking is damn near impossible?

You would need a major re-write of the design regs, to allow designers more freedom, creating more disparity between the cars, to make up for what you'd lose going back to more durable tyres.

And you can still drive the cars to their limit...just not for as long. Even so, Perez looked just fine driving his car to the limit chasing down Alonso.

John wrote:Back to the actual racing, what does everyone think about Lewis Hamilton's new racing approach this season?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/17629978

Of course consistency is the key to winning the world title and in the long term it will benefit him but I love watching the old Lewis Hamilton actually racing and putting you on the edge of your seat. In my opinion watching Lewis in Australia and Malaysia was boring, is it a trend most of the 'exciting drivers' are going to follow in an era of managing the tyres. I'm hoping for a really exciting race in China because so far has been slightly disappointing. Thoughts?

As I said in another thread, its good that Lewis seems to be learning to be more cautious, as I've been gutted when he's lost points when in good positions. If it helps him to be more successful, then I'm happy for him.

On the other hand I do miss seeing him really throw his car around, on the ragged edge. I've never seen another driver in the modern era do that.

@Stevie G & Critical Mass:

Don't forget tyre degradation isn't all about driving style. Some cars are naturally harder on their tyres than others, due to their aero configuration and/or chassis set up.

This means you can drive some cars harder than others and not experience the same level of tyre wear. If teams can design their cars to be easier on the tyres, it gives the drivers more freedom to race harder.

Good point DW.

Dryewolfe but we have KERS and the DRS now. They would help with overtaking.

Belgarion of Riva wrote:Dryewolfe but we have KERS and the DRS now. They would help with overtaking.

While its true DRS and KERS help, DRS can often be negated by the defending driver using KERS. In quite a few cases already we've seen that the speed advantage between cars can be marginal and often insufficient to complete a pass.

In any case, regardless of what tyres are used, everyone uses the same kinds and so is subject to the same basic wear rates, made worse or better by their car set up and driving style.

Remember how Hamilton in particular still suffered worse tyre wear than most other drivers, even when Bridgestones were used?

In the end, the two keys are to develop a car that doesn't eat its tyres and to develop a driving style that helps minimise wear. Look at Jenson Button, for example. He isn't exactly slow, or boring when he has to race.

I think there are to many types of hamilton viewer in the op. Most are a mixture dependant on the day or even time of day!

The probelm is more about how people view other peoples posts on message boards.

i would say there are only 4 types of hamilton viewers.

1. fans.
2. fanboys.
3. haters(for one or many reasons)
4. people that dont care either way