On what basis do you decide who the best driver in the world is ?

[SILVERS95]

How do we all come to the conclusion of who is the best driver in the world ?

Most people regard TGF as having this title , but on what basis do we decide it on . Is he better than say Jeff Gordon in Nascar ?. If you put TGF in a Nascar machine for 3 years , would he beat be able to win the championship ?

If Montoya won a couple of F1 World Championships , would that make him better than TGF who has never won the Indy 500 or even a title in America's Oval racing ?.

How can we say or explain that TGF is the best in the world when there are such other great racing drivers in the world .

Jim Clarke raced anything he could , so did Sterling Moss , Its being talked about in another thread that TGF wont go near Oval Racing , so does he still carry the top mantle if he hasnt experienced different types of the sport ?

[Mr V]

The title of "best in the world" can not be pinned on one person because, as you say, other series drivers don't have the chance to prove their worth. Very much like, "who's the greatest ever" can never be pinned on someone due to different era's and equipment etc.

The only way you could get a best in the world is to take (only) drivers who've won a series championship and let them all race in every catagory (ie... F1, Cart, IRL, Rallying, Le Mans)

The candidates would be TGF, JPM, JV, De Ferrain, Hornish, McRae, Makkinen, Gronholm and Burns and any active Le Mans winner(as these have all won a title in one form or another)

[racer69]

In regards to F1, i think he is the most gifted in terms of ability, but a good driver also includes good race craft and ethics, which he clearly doesn't have.

[Red]

"Is M Schumacher the best driver in the world today?" is as meaningless as "Is he the best driver ever?".

Is he best Formula 1 driver right now? Yes he is. On what basis do that decide that? Easy. Not 5 WDC. I know he is the best because the best team pay him the best salary and give him a No.1 contract (not sure about that one, but let's just say he has an undisputable no. 1 status). Despite giving him the best car. 7 years in a row. :confused: I'm fully confident that Ferrari are not idiots. They should know what they are doing.

[SILVERS95]

Originally posted by Red
[B
Is he best Formula 1 driver right now? Yes he is. On what basis do that decide that? Easy. Not 5 WDC. [/B]

that wasnt the question . In many tv programmes and magazines etc , he gets called the best driver in the world . That is what this thread is about .

[Miss Hardt]

I have never considered him best and I never will. Especially when I know how drivers were before all those car improvements and safety measures.

[Red]

Originally posted by SILVERS95
that wasnt the question . In many tv programmes and magazines etc , he gets called the best driver in the world . That is what this thread is about .

As I already said, this is what THEY say. Not me. I find that comparisons stupid. (but neither do I say that I don't agree ).

[Gt_R]

Quote racer69:"i think he is the most gifted in terms of ability, but a good driver also includes good race craft and ethics, which he clearly doesn't have."

I think what we want to know as "best driver" is in terms of abilities. Just like the best teacher doesn't include good looks and huge implants... best driver basically is one who drives best. Is Schumacher the best now? One of the very best.

[Legend]

Schumacher is divine!

[Sato san]

Ethics must surley play a big part in it also .

[Sato san]

(

[Liz]

This is a meaningless question, akin to "what time is it on the moon?"

But a clue to the answer to a question that CAN be answered, for example "Who is the greatest driver in the world among those drivers currently living and still racing?" might be found in the answer to "Which driver was recently voted Driver of the Century?"

Hint: Not TGF.

[Legend]

The driver of the century was awarded at the end of the last century, and his name is Alain Prost.

And now let’s see what the “driver of the century” has got to say. BBC Thursday, 12 October, 2000, 16:16 GMT 17:16 UK




Prost: Schumacher is better than me

Alain Prost, the most successful Grand Prix driver of all time, has paid tribute to new world champion Michael Schumacher saying the German is a better driver than he was.
Prost, now a team owner, has won more Formula One races than anyone in history, but he believes Schumacher's talent surpasses his own in certain areas.
"I wasn't able to drive every car at top speed straight away. In that he is better than me," said Prost, referring to Schumacher's amazing ability to push it to the limit on his first flying lap out of the pits.
"Without a driver of his calibre, Ferrari would hardly have survived the last five seasons without a title. Without Michael, the team would have been politically destroyed."


So what was the hint?

[Jordi]

Only Mario Andretti, Graham Hill or Jim Clark can be considered the best drivers in the world because all three won Indy, won F1 and have won in a lot of different classes, going from Le Mans to Daytona or touring cars.

Nowadays no drivers do that, so no one of the drivers of today can really be considered the best of the world.

[Speedworx]

I feel he isn't the best driver in the world.

[Legend]

Oh who Schumi the best driver? No he is just lucky and he cheats that is all!
Here are my reasons:

Team orders
Jerez and Adilade
Second drivers helping him !!!

Where whould he be without those things?

[f1manoz]

My personal opinion is Jim Clark is the best yesterday, today and tomorrow.

[Jukebox]

Jim Clark?

You were not even born yet when he finished his career in F1. Funny how could someone rate a driver even when one never actually seen the driver race?

not attacking you f1manoz but just puzzled

[Gt_R]

It's something they question too in pitpass.com... how people can judge a driver of the past they NEVER saw.

I always don't believe that we can say who's best from different era. They are all some of the greatest to ever grace our world... Clark, Fangio, Senna, Schumacher.

But of the current load of F1 drivers...and those who very recently came and left... i'd say it's Michael Schumacher. What do i base my judgement on? Not just what they achieve in another series, not just how many poles they can string together, not just how good/bad a car they drove. Its also their abilities that shone in all conditions, their performance over the years, their dedication to their job, their achievements with respect to what they have and sportsmanship, etc And when all adds up... its Michael.

And even if we have to just judge by driving abilities alone. Michael is whom i believe still have the edge.


Best driver in the world? That really depends on what they drive... BS to Michael not doing Carts hence not the best... did JPM or JV do truck racing or destruction derby??!

[Sato san]

......but how can he be called the best if he's never been able to prove that , im not attacking Michael personally , im saying many people say he's the best driver in the world yet...he has naver even raced in a race of the size of the INDY 500...for all we know , he may suck on a oval !. If that was the case, then how could he be the best in the world ?....more like he's the best in F1 if thats the general opinion.

And like it or not , Ovals are a major part of worldwide racing .

[macdaddy]

Of course he's no longer active, but I can think of only one name. He's won the WDC. He's won the CART championship four times. Indy champion and Daytona 500 champion. In fact, he's won every major championship there is with the exception of LeMans. He is gracious and gentlemanly, and extremely receptive to any fan who wants to talk to him. And his name is Mario.

[Jordi]

Originally posted by Jukebox
Jim Clark?

You were not even born yet when he finished his career in F1. Funny how could someone rate a driver even when one never actually seen the driver race?

not attacking you f1manoz but just puzzled

Neither I was born. But statistics and videos and stories are for us to see and wonder and feel that we were unfortunate to not have seen Clark.

But if a driver has won twice the F1 title, the Indy 500 and raced succesfully in many more series, has got to be closer to the best driver than Michael.

However, to me Mario Andretti is the closest to the best driver ever.

Originally posted by Sato san
[BAnd like it or not , Ovals are a major part of worldwide racing . [/B]

I wouldn't say they are a major part of racing outside of North America. Sure, other countries have ovals but I'd say a majority of racing is done on road courses (in other countries).

If people are going to pick on a driver for not doing one aspect of racing then why not others? What about other types of racing and races such as the Bathurst 1000, WRC, Touring Cars, the Le Mans series etc? Did Prost do Le Mans or the Indy 500? Is he a 'pussy' because he didn't like the rain? (The obvious answer is 'no')

[Lee Janotta]

You know, decades ago you _could_ say who was the greatest in the world. Drivers needed prize money, even the top drivers, and so you'd see them in the Monaco GP, Monte Carlo Rally, LeMans 24 Hours, Indy 500, Dayton 500... You'd get to see the world's finest driving against each other in all sort of different venues, and you'd see who was really the best.

Today, F1 drivers are so completely insulated from everything else, there's no valid way to make comparions. Plus, the cars have gone thru so many decades of development, that the skillset for driving an F1 car and a WRC car are radically different.

I don't think you can make valid comparisons anymore. As for TGF, I'm not even willing to say he's the best in F1.

[Red]

You know... decades ago it_was_impossible to say who was the greatest driver in the world. That's why they decided that altough much fun is to chaotically race here and there it is wiser to invent a World Drivers Championship.

Today F1 is so insulated from everything else but why would you want to make comparisons with IRL for example? Since the big money are in F1 is common sense to assume that actually those 22 drivers that race F1 cars are a priori better than others. THe guys that pay the bills are not idiots you know...