Posted by Guessedworker on Sun, 12 Dec 2021 23:57 | #

Some perspective on the Hamilton - Verstappen contest ...

Massa effectively lost the 2008 title when his Ferrari’s refuelling hose did not detach. But for that oddity all Hamilton’s championships would have come via Mercedes during the years of their dominance.

By way of a comparison between the Merc and the Red Bull this year, Bottas finished thirty six points ahead of Perez.  Few would claim that he is the better driver.

Another indicator of Hamilton versus Verstappen is the manner in which he, Verstappen, has crushed all his second drivers since first arriving on the F1 scene. Hamilton was beaten over the season by Button in one of their three years together at Maclaren. He was beaten to the championship by Nico Rosberg in one of their three years.

This season Verstappen had most points, most wins, and most poles. But for the left-rear tyre blow out at Baku, Hamilton’s red mist moment at Silverstone, and Bottas’ first corner calamity in Hungary Verstappen would have claimed the title earlier.

Posted by Guessedworker on Tue, 21 Dec 2021 21:38 | #

Enraged Hamilton fans, no doubt damaged Antifa/BLM types among them, have taken to social media to attack the Williams driver whose accident led to Max Verstappen’s chance to snatch the title:

Latifi shocked by “hate, abuse and threats” online after Abu Dhabi F1 crash

The Williams driver crashed into the wall at Turn 14 with six laps remaining at the Yas Marina Circuit, resulting in a safety car that would help decide the championship.

Race director Michael Masi opted to resume the race with one lap remaining, during which Max Verstappen passed Lewis Hamilton to win both the race and the title.

In an open letter he posted to social media on Tuesday, the Canadian called out the unpleasant messages he received in the wake of the race but says they were “not really a surprise to me.”

...

“It concerns me how somebody else might react if this same level of abuse was ever directed at them. No one should let the activities of a vocal minority dictate who they are.

“Events in the last week have made me see how important it is to work together to stop this kind of thing happening and to support those on the receiving end.

“I realise I’m unlikely to convince those who acted in this way towards me to change their ways – and they may even try to use this message against me – but it’s right to call out this kind of behaviour and not stay silent.

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/latifi-shocked-by-hate-abuse-and-threats-online-after-abu-dhabi-f1-crash/6947786/?nrt=54