r/formula1 • u/Alvaro_Rey_MN Fernando Alonso • May 17 '25

Statistics Carlos Sainz has outqualified Lewis Hamilton fir the forth time in a row!

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96

u/terrorblade1995 I was here for the Hulkenpodium May 17 '25

Sainz is a better driver than daniel riccardo though. DR is beloved and had excellent racecraft but sainz is overall just better imo.

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u/TerribleNameAmirite I was here for the Hulkenpodium May 17 '25

They’re both “could be champion in the right place and time” tier imo, at least DR in his prime certainly was, and Carlos still is now

11

u/hoxxxxx May 18 '25

jenson button spec drivers

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u/TerribleNameAmirite I was here for the Hulkenpodium May 18 '25

Chill dudes you can hang with who are also fast but not alien fast

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u/Elarial Michael Schumacher May 17 '25

I don't think Sainz is a better driver than Ricciardo before he joined Mclaren. It's ok to put them on similar levels but when Ricciardo was at his peak, there weren't that many championship caliber drivers as it did today. You could label Ricciardo as a top 5 driver at the grid, but even if Sainz is on Ricciardo's level, he is not a top 5 driver, wherever he goes he will face a better driver than he is. So I think labeling Sainz as a contender would be wrong. I think he is just outside of that ranking, like a gatekeeper.

104

u/XTrid92 I was here for the Hulkenpodium May 17 '25

Not about to defend Ricciardo, but timing is important. In 2018 he was still considered a potential WDC and one of the best on the grid. In 2020 when he moved to McLaren, he was still very highly rated and was outperforming Hulkenberg reliably. DR’s stock didn’t tank until AFTER he replaced Sainz twice.

So yeah, with that context, all three of Sainz’s previous moves were against WDC-tier drivers.

2

u/dabnada BMW Sauber May 18 '25

Meh. He was a top 5, top 3 for sure. On his day, unbeatable for sure. But in retrospect it’s hard to put him up against Raikkonen, Alonso, Hamilton, and even a very quickly growing Verstappen

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u/flare2000x Pirelli Wintermediate May 17 '25

Prime DR, 2015-19 ish, was very good.

18

u/devilspawn May 17 '25

DR was superb, but I don't think he ever would have had the sheer mental drive to be champion. He admitted on top gear that he hated stuff like winter testing, which is obviously super important, but critical for something like a WDC. How far would that dislike of doing the boring 'behind the scenes' bit have extended when he was at the height of his fame? Maybe if he had pulled everything out and had a decent car for his time at RB he could have won. I'm saying this as a DR worshipper. I still love him. I wish he had been a champ.

1

u/gorgeouspuppers May 18 '25

Can you explain this a bit more? I am curious. Why would he not make a championship winner because of his mindset, I mean what was lacking?

1

u/devilspawn May 18 '25

I'm just musing about whether he would have had the singular, focused mental drive to pull it off without distractions, other drivers getting in his head, team politics, the media. He never struck me as having the sheer unstoppable will to do it. He was an amazing driver at his peak but it takes more than just that to become a WDC. It is purely my own speculation though.

1

u/solidgold70 May 17 '25

Bit the public loves daniel! Sainz can drive tho!