I hope this is not a re-post.<ul><li><a href="http://www.speedtv.com/articles/auto/formulaone/32969/?page=1">http://www.speedtv.com/articles/auto/formulaone/32969/?page=1</a</li></ul>

 

such a heartless, business like image. I'm more like "tifosi" towards McLaren. It's gonna be rough adjusting to seeing Kimi in that red suit.

 

He donated millions to Tsunami charities, and other charities world wide, and he does not demand the spotlight for those acts. Rumor had it he was even a little miffed that the press found out about his $10 million donation to the Tsunami victims.

But on the track, he's an a$$hole beyond all else. Beyond what even the worst of the worst are. It's not competative spirit, the drive to win, it's Matt F'ing Neal syndrome.

And if you don't know who Matt Neal is, find a torrent of some BTCC racing. And he thinks Plato has an attitude problem...*ROFLMAO*

 

I had the pleasure of spending a weekend with him at the infamous Indy debacle and when you have a chance to talk to him with friends around he is a much different person than what his on camera persona is.

I must confess that I have been a fan of his for quite a while but I had always thought of him like you probably do. Maybe a little arrogant. Because that is the image that is projected when he is on camera. He HATES interviews and will say totally irrational and inflammatory things when stupid questions are asked.

But now that I have met him I think I have an understanding of why. He does not want the attention. Notice that his family rarely travels with him. Notice that he does not have an entourage with him wherever he goes. The group of people that we were with that weekend were, 2 farmers from Switzerland and one of the engineers at Harley Davidson. Not exactly the jet set.

I do think that he has done some things on the track that deserve criticism. But I truly believe that it was done in the heat of battle and because he is so competitive.

One of the memories that I will most cherish in my life is when we were all sitting down for Corona's after the race and Michael got up and asked who wanted more beers. It's not often that the highest paid athlete in the world offers to be your waiter. We spent 2 1/2 hours just talking about the fun he had here in the States and he talked quite a bit about his kids. He was of course very disappointed in what happened that weekend and you could tell that the victory was hollow to him. But that discussion was very short lived and most of that talk centered on him telling stories about his friends from Swiz.

 

and riding in to an event on his personal Harley suggests that he simply wants to do the job he does so well. I wish he did not have the track incidents that have tarnished his image somewhat, but then again, I worshipped Senna, who was very much the same way, with the added Latin fire thrown in for good measure.
To me, this is all too typical of today's highest paid athletes, regardless of their chosen sport. Kobe might be another example of this. They just project more of a "spoiled brat" attitude, instead of what we regard as true sportsmen, like Jim Clark or Jackie Stewart.

 

He saw what it took for them to earn their WDC, which requires a total dedication from their team and the ruthlessness to win at any cost.

According to Mansell, the day he won his title, Senna went to congratulate him. As they were talking, Senna said something to Mansell that made his veins run cold. Senna said something like the following: "Nigel, now you know why I am such a bastard on track. The feeling of being the WC, it is a feeling that I want and it is a feeling that I don't want anyone else to have as long as I am still racing."

You look at any multi-time F1 WC, all of them have a mean streak in them. They were even more amplified in the 80's. Piquet and Mansell didn't get along either, neither did Prost and Senna or Prost and Mansell. I honestly think that for a team be successful in today's F1, it must have a clearly defined #1 driver. Look at how Alonso is complaining about the lack of support from Fisi. In F1, you have your GP winners and then you have your Multiple WC winners. GP winners has the potential to win a title once in a while if the opportuniy presents for them, but the truely great drivers makes opportunities happen for themselve, and can win on a consistant basis and remain competitive for an extend amount of time.

Anyway, needless to say, you are certainly entitle to your opinion on MS, and I am not trying to change your mind about him. I just wanted to point out how and why he is the way he is, on track. Look at Senna, while he was driving, he was either hated or loved. Now that he is gone, most will speak only foundly of him. I believe we will miss Schumacher greatly after this season as he goes into retirement. Yes, he is controversial, but at the same time, he demands our respect for what he has done for F1.

PS: Sterling Moss, even in Vintage Racing these days, he still have no reservation in forcing other cars off the track and damaging their multi-million dollar automobiles so he can win the race.

Regards,

 

But that was also before the commercialization we see rampant now. Everyone looked in horror when the first "Gold Leaf Team Lotus" debuted to the press in the fall of '67.Never had an F1 car been allowed to display anything other than the recognized National colors. Now you never see am F1 car in full "National colors" except for a splash here and there. Stirling wasn't exactly known as a "Gentlman" even by those standards of the day.

 

All had ice water in their veins, but they were all "gentlemen" on the track. You don't see thier kind these day, save for Damon Hill most recently. Prost was another that was as cool as they came. He was so fast and smooth, he didn't need to be a bastard on the track.

 

Granted that he did recommend to Ron Dennis about signing Senna, but once the team embraced Senna fully, he started to complaint about unequal equipments. He took a page right out of Senna's playbook and demanded #1 status with his move to Ferrari, which prompted Mansell to leave after the 1990 season.

The other drivers you have mentioned, as the nature of the beast known as F1 has changed dramatically since those days. Honda money changed everything in the 80's.

 

then I say no one is more gentleman than the great Fangio. However, even he took advantage of team order to win a championship.