Why Vettel isn't The Best F1 Driver Of All Time

"Speedmonkey" (Speedmonkey)
11/02/2013 at 11:26 • Filed to: F1

Car Throttle has analysed every F1 champion's season and scored them on a level playing field, to come up with a definitive top ten F1 drivers of all time.

!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! If you think that Sebastian Vettel's dominance has catapulted him to the top of the charts then prepare to be surprised.

What I really enjoy about the list is that the man who is at the top of the all time F1 driver's chart was quite portly, and 40 when he scored his first world championship - Juan Manuel Fangio. Huzza for us older guys.

Here's what Car Throttle says:

"It was almost inevitable Vettel would become the youngest man to win four F1 titles in India and in the days leading up to the race, commentators everywhere have been comparing him to the greatest in F1s history.

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However directly comparing F1 drivers is difficult when they raced in different eras – F1s hadsix different points systems over the 63 seasons and many championships were decided on a certain number of race results being dropped.

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So we’ve done something never done before. We’ve rewritten history and scored every finish according to every points system ever used and ranked the drivers on a level playing field according to the number of points they scored per race start – so we can bring you a definitive list of the top 10 drivers ever and answer the question… is Vettel really the best?"

DISCUSSION (9)

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Speedmonkey
11/02/2013 at 11:34

Hell yeah, Fangio was a beast! During the balls of steel days, Vettel would not have made it.

Gimmi-Sagan-Om-Draken > Speedmonkey
11/02/2013 at 11:49

I often see these comparisons, I would like anyone to try and drive the old cars and then try a new one. It takes quite another class of person to tame the old cars in the era they were driven. They are difficult on the limit, to say the least. Lets not forget the constant threat of a horrific death. I remember going to races when I was young and someone dying wasn't really unexpected. I tend to think certain modern drivers I have met would have been good in the old days and others would never have made it, despite the performance they show in a modern car. I have always wanted to recalculated the drivers on a level points system, to do otherwise is not really correct.

Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. > Gimmi-Sagan-Om-Draken
11/02/2013 at 12:01

It's like Richard Petty's 200 wins came in an era where there was only about 10 really competitive drivers and 66 races a season (and some races very short...) vs. today's 30 competitive drivers and 36 races. The idea of winning a race by over a lap is just not there anymore, but it used to happen.

IDROVEAPICKUPTRUCK > Speedmonkey
11/02/2013 at 12:13

This seems like a really half-hearted attempt to come up with an argument against Vettel. They go through all the trouble to grade everyone based upon points/start but then throw it out the window so they can rank Ascari over Vettel. It's a 'level' playing field except it doesn't take into account at all the quality of the team or the car that drivers are in. Vettel has had the best cars on grid for most of his time at Red Bull but he had terrible cars at Torro Rosso (but still managed to win a race before Red Bull did). I was expecting something better from a 'level' playing field like comparing results to teammates etc.

I don't know if Vettel is the best driver of all time because arguments like that are insane, it's almost impossible to compare drivers of different eras against each other just like it is impossible to compare the careers of any professional athletes against those of different eras. Vettel is the best right now. Period. Anyone trying to claim different is only deluding themselves.

Gimmi-Sagan-Om-Draken > Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street.
11/02/2013 at 12:29

Yes we run into these comparisons, unless its adjusted I don't really accept it. There is no way to measure racing conditions but if you've ever driven a 1950s F1 car you know it feels like you are taming a wild animal with limited grip that can come back to bite you when you least expect it. I love to see Brundle ect.. get in a really new car and marvel at how good they are, even compared to his era of cars.

Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise > Speedmonkey
11/02/2013 at 12:51

I have to say that this seems like a bit of a click-grab. If we say this statistical data is concrete and exclusively sufficient as a measure of skill, then we'd have to say Lewis Hamilton is a better driver than Senna.

FireSpittingV12 > Speedmonkey
11/02/2013 at 13:13

For me, Schumacher was the best.

Mikeado > Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise
11/02/2013 at 13:17

Things can be better on paper but not as good subjectively, if that helps.

Speedmonkey > Mikeado
11/02/2013 at 13:58

Schumi's points average was brought down by his Merc seasons of whither whereas Hamilton has almost always been in one of the top 3 cars.

Mikeado's point is a good one too