The 50 Fastest F1 drivers ever

Not too sure about Damon Hill. Yes, he did some amazing performances but he never had raw speed. Most of the time he had to concentrate and extract every ounce from within himself to achieve pole or to win races.

For Damon to be quick he made it look like bloody hard work!

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Originally Posted by Vitesse

Sheer speed has nothing to do with success in motor racing.

Another pointless "how can we fill eight pages this month?" feature ....

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There is an obsession with these lists these days, right across the media. It sure gets people talking, however.

My top three would be Senna, Peterson, Villeneuve.

Trouble is that a lot of magazines with these 'top whatever' lists in do sell well, and you can understand why. The mag I work for does them occasionally, not because they are great features (though they can be very good given the right topic and good words) but because people do seem to like them.

This one here is scraping the barrel a bit, if you ask me — just another way of putting the same names in a different order.

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Originally Posted by theugsquirrel

(According to a jury selected by F1Racing including the likes of Mosely, Whiting, Moss, Rosberg, Todt, Tambay)

... 50 Tony Brise... 40 Jo Siffert...

Pretty comprehensive list there, However number 38 is a strange inclusion, as there were World Champions like Phil Hill and Mike Hawthorn that didn't make the cut... What are your thoughts on this list?

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Strange too that Pedro Rodriguez was conveniently forgotten. The only reliable ride he ever had was with the John Wyer Gulf-Porsche outfit(GT40s & 917s). Aside from his infant years in GP racing at Ferrari, he appeared to do relatively well with 'decent' rides (namely BRM) when such occassions were presented.

Also, like Ickx, he was noted for his performances in the rain. Which should be a factor to consider when compiling such a list.

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Originally Posted by ArrowsFA1

It's funny how Prost is only at 14 because he never seemed quick, but certainly was, and yet Mansell is at 4 because he always looked quick... ;)

Gilles Villeneuve defined quick, and yet only rated at 11 :eek:

Lists. You've gotta love 'em :s mokin:

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Yep, their list is at best 50% correct.

They must be kidding when they include Button, but not JV (I'm not even a fan of his). Also Jarno and Mark W shouldn't be on that list while WDCs are left out.

And what is Kimi doing in 13th place?!

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Originally Posted by AAReagles

Strange too that Pedro Rodriguez was conveniently forgotten. The only reliable ride he ever had was with the John Wyer Gulf-Porsche outfit(GT40s & 917s). Aside from his infant years in GP racing at Ferrari, he appeared to do relatively well with 'decent' rides (namely BRM) when such occassions were presented.

Also, like Ickx, he was noted for his performances in the rain. Which should be a factor to consider when compiling such a list.

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On his day, Pedro was unbeatable, and the same goes for Ickx. I wonder what criteria were employed in compiling this list?

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Originally Posted by futuretiger9

I wonder what criteria were employed in compiling this list?

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Lots of subjectivity and the need to have a few modern era drivers (read Jenson Button here) between these 50.

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Originally Posted by futuretiger9

I wonder what criteria were employed in compiling this list?

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I believe that the selection tools included whiskey, a blindfold and a dart board. :p

Seriously, Mansell and Peterson faster than Fangio? :rolleyes: The Old Man had a reputation for winning races as slowly as possible, but he also started nearly 60% of the races he entered from the pole (Senna's record was 40%). Fangio was always as fast as he wanted to be and no one in his era could touch him. And Stewart 9th? He won 3 WDCs without ever having the fastest car in the field (the cars were only fast enough to win with Jackie Stewart driving them), and in 1973 he had the 3rd fastest car but won the most races (and Peterson won fewer races in a faster car).

The problem with the list is too many names. In the World Championship era, once you go past Fangio, Senna, Schumacher, Clark, Stewart, Prost, Moss and possibly Ascari, you are reaching.

ClarkFan

It's a somewhat meaningless list because, as has been said, raw speed doesn't always equate to success. Montoya, for example, is one of the most rapid men ever to set foot in a Formula One car, but lacked many of the other traits necessary to become a champion.

Damon Hill, on the other hand, was a WDC but got there through a combination of decent (but not blinding) speed, technical nouse, and sheer bloody-mindedness. Was he one of the 50 quickest? I don't think so.

Silly list from a silly magazine.

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Originally Posted by ArrowsFA1

It's funny how Prost is only at 14 because he never seemed quick, but certainly was, and yet Mansell is at 4 because he always looked quick... ;)

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indeed. And rosberg, berger - Why are they so low compared to Mansell, considering they easily at least equalled him? And where is Elio de Angelis, you know the guy who easily owned "our" Nigel at Lotus?

button as 49? hahahahaha. What is he doing on that list?
montoya at 25th (which in itself is beyond a joke) and Ralf nowhere? Can i ask what drugs were they using?

Why is alonso so high as nr.8? Why is Kimi 13th, yet the guy who is making him look slow, is nowhere to be found?
Bellof is grossy overrated aswell, considering Brundle is nowhere to be found on that list. There is so much retardation in that list Im beginning to think Peter Windsor played a significant part in making it.

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Originally Posted by BeansBeansBeans

Gilles should be at the top. In my opinion, he was the fastest racing driver of all time. He wasn't the best, as he lacked many of the qualities displayed by the likes of Senna, Schumacher, Prost, Stewart....etc, but he was definitely the fastest.

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How can you say Gilles was the fastest when he was beaten in equal cars by Jody and Reutemann?