Voting
on the Best and Worst of the 2003 season closed on the 1st of December. Here
are the winners in each of the categories:
Best
Driver - Michael Schumacher: For the 3rd in year in a row Michael wins in
the Best Driver category but unlike the last 2 years when he won with a
convincing margin, this year it was a lot closer with Michael getting just
under 40% of the vote and Kimi Raikkonen in second with 25.48% of the vote.
Still Michael Schumacher won a record 6th title and had the most number of
wins.
Worst
Driver - Antonio Pizzonia: The first of two awards to Antonio who
struggled to keep up with his team-mate Mark Webber. Pizzonia received 38.12%
of the votes. Second place was taken by ex World Champ Jacques Villeneuve with
17.93% which didn't come as a total surprise as his position in the team
started to take its toll on his driving. It is worth noting that Coulthard and
Michael Schumacher were 3rd and 4th with 8.55% and 8.43% respectively.
Best
Qualifier - Mark Webber: With the new Qualifying and Parc Fermé rules it
is harder to determine who is the best and worst in this category but over a
whole season one should be able to tell who stood out and who faltered. It was
a close fight but Mark Webber wins the Best Qualifier category with just under
22% of the vote from Juan Pablo Montoya (the winner last year) who managed
18.35% of the vote. Michael Schumacher was 3rd with 14.7% ahead of Kimi
Raikkonen with 12.27%
Worst
Qualifier - David Coulthard: The one lap qualifying did not suite David
and it shows, he received just over 34% of the vote. Nicolas Kiesa who joined
Minardi late in the season got 15.88% while Jacques Villeneuve was 3rd getting
12.24%
Best
Team - Ferrari: For the 3rd time in a row Ferrari win in the Best Team
Category and whilst they have won convincingly, their winning margins in the
last 2 years were much higher.
Again they managed to fight off the challenge from Williams and won the
Constructors Title after nearly losing it. Ferrari received 51.56% of the vote
while Williams in second got 27.11%
Worst
Team - Minardi: Scoring 0 points despite the point system change which
provides a better opportunity to score points. Minardi received 38.02% of the
vote. Jordan weren't too far behind with 29.46% and that wasn't a surprise as
they kept falling back as the season progressed. Lets hope both Minardi and
Jordan get a decent engine package for 2004 and can fight with the rest of the
mid-field.
BAR was 3rd with 11.12% while Ferrari was 4th with 8.68%
Best
Rookie - Cristiano da Matta: Cristiano convincingly won this category. He
may not have beaten his much more (F1) experienced team-mate in qualifying (it
is hard to compare based on grid positions) but he certainly beat him in the
races. Expect a lot more from him in 2004.
da Matta received a massive 82.33% of the vote. There was really no contest!
Worst
Rookie - Antonio Pizzonia: When you get the
nod of approval from Sir Frank Williams but fail to show it on track don't
expect favours. 60.32% of the voters put Pizzonia as the Worst Qualifier with
Nicola Kiesa in 2nd with 24.69%.
Most
Improved Team - Renault: For the second year in a row, over 50% of the
voters put Renault as the most improved team. Whilst they couldn't unseat any
of the top 3 teams, they were close. The loss of Gascoyne and a brand new
engine design for 2004 may slow their progress next season.
Williams came in 2nd with 22.15% of the vote.
Least
Improved Team - Jordan: It comes as no surprise that Jordan won this
category. The team continues to decline and towards the end of the season they
weren't that much better than Minardi. They were 6th in 2002 and this season
they were 2nd last. Jordan received 26.89% of the vote. Minardi in 2nd got
19.59% and BAR in 3rd got 18.37%
Most
Improved Driver - Fernando Alonso: Raced for Minardi in 2001, took on a
testing role at Renault in 2002 and finished 6th in the Drivers' Championship
in 2003. You can't ask for much more!
Alonso received 35.32% of the vote with Raikkonen in 2nd with 19.54% and
Webber in 3rd with 17.11%
Least
Improved Driver - David Coulthard: When your younger team-mate is just 2
points behind the World Champion and you end up 7th and 40 points less you
don't expect 'Best Of' awards you expect 'Worst of' one. Not sure why David is
still driving!
Coulthard collected 29.76% of the vote in this category with Villeneuve in 2nd
with 19.09% (which isn't a surprise either after being beaten by Button. That
same Button who Villeneuve didn't consider as 'quick' at the start of the
season). Michael Schumacher came 3rd with 14.35% of the vote. Has he peaked
and is he starting to slow ?
The
New Qualifying Format - Much Worse: 31.57% of the voters consider the new
Qualifying format much worse than the older format, that is understandable
given that 1 lap qualifying doesn't provide an accurate head to head
comparison. What is surprising is that 24.03% of the voters thought that the
new format is much better than the old one. Perhaps some of those voters believe
that the new Qualifying format was one main reason for having a close
championship. Whatever the reasons are, it is clear that the fans are split on
this one. 49.31% think the new format is worse (by a little or a lot) while
43.02% think the new format is better with only 7.67% indicating no
difference.
The
New Points System - Much Better: The majority of the voters thought that
the new points system is better than its predecessor with 32.83% considering
it much better while 25.28% considering it slightly better. 31.7% of the
voters thought it to be worse than the old points system with 16.48%
considering it much worse while 15.22 considered it slightly worse. 10.19% of
the voters indicated no difference between the two.
The
New Parc Fermé Rules - Much Worse: 29.06% of the voters thought the new
rules were much worse while 24.03% of the voters thought the new rules were
much better. Again like the Qualifying rules, some of the voters would like to
see Qualifying on equal terms with same fuel loads while others don't mind the
changes as it creates a mixed grid and not so predictable results.
The fans are split on this one too with no clear majority on either side.
44.28% consider the rules worse (by a little or a lot) while 41.76% consider
them better (by a little of a lot). 13.96% of the voters don't see a
difference between the two.
Congratulations
to the winners and we look forward to an even closer season in 2004.
Below
are comments by those voters who elected to tell us why they voted the way
they did. At the bottom of the page you can see the top 5 in
each of the categories.
What others are saying:
I thought that
this season was much more close and exciting. Schumacher deservedly came out
on top, but Kimi still was pushing him hard right to the end!! And so we are
left with the end of 2003 and rumours speculating on 2004. The qualifying is
now changing were back to the Saturday Qualifying but instead the drivers will
get two shots. Not quite sure the point in this other than it will cut back
the spending costs and help the smaller teams. What I as an individual want to
know is when will the traction control be stripped off? The F.I.A commented in
October 2002 that from Silverstone 2003 it would be banned. Great, but there
was a change of heart at the start of the season and it was to stay there till
the end of 2003. But no further statements have been made. Will it ever
go? (From 2004, Automatic Gearboxes and Launch Control are banned but Traction
Control will stay indefinitely (Source)
.... Ed)
In recent times we hear that Juan Pablo Montoya is to leave Williams for
McLaren in 2005. Fantastic news for them with him to partner Kimi Raikkonen
and very exciting for us viewers.
On the subject of British drivers I hope to be seeing Ralph Firman and Justin
Wilson racing once again next season, but there's the possibility that Jos
Verstappen will be not be racing anymore if the drive with Minardi or Jaguar
doesn't work out.
2004 for sure will be another exciting season and I hope all the Formula 1
fans out there will enjoy it too!! - Adam - England
(BD - KR, WD - AP, BQ - KR, WQ - AP, BT - Williams, WT - Minardi, MID - FA, LID
- DC, MIT - BAR, LIT - Ferrari, BR - JW, WR - AP.
QFormat - Much Better, Point System - Slightly Better, Parc Fermé - Slightly
Worse)
Juan Pablo Montoya
won two races, in Monaco and Germany. The Columbian improved most because of
nine podiums. Sadly, he just missed the chance to take the world champion
after the disappointing 6th place in Indy and retirement in Suzuka.
Except for the first three races with one in Hungary, the other twelve races
were all won by either Ferrari or Williams drivers (M Schumacher, R
Schumacher, Montoya and Barrichello) because of the strongest challenge for
them. Last year saw Williams were unable to beat Ferraris after one-two in
Malaysia. This year Williams were able to stop Ferrari at least five races.
Williams claimed one-two in Nurburgring and Magny-Cours. Ferrari couldn't make
one-two but double podiums (Michael 1st and Rubens 3rd) in four races.
After dominating wins in the first two races, McLaren were unable to challenge
to win. Even if Kimi claimed two poles, the 24-year-old Finn still failed to
win. Actually, he secured ten podiums. David Coulthard could only manage more
2 podiums, 2nd in Hockenheim and 3rd in Suzuka. There had the good news for
Woking team. Both drivers secured double podium finishes in Suzuka just behind
Barrichello's Ferrari after the retirement of Montoya and Alonso.
Renault improved very well but wasn't most. Due to the top three teams proved
too strong, the team secured only five podiums. Alonso won his first race in
Hungary with two poles. Trulli finished 3rd place in Hockenheim for the first
time since European GP in 1999, just second podium in his career.
Both BAR's improved not very well, with Villeneuve's only two points finishes.
The Japanese rookie Takuma Sato replaced the Canadian in season finale. This
means that Jacques would be his final race with his BAR in Indy ended in
retirement. Both Jenson and Sato finished 4th and 6th respectively in order to
end in 5th in the constructors' championship. Despite of the sixth title for
Michael, the two championship contenders came too close before Italian GP was
held. But the German won in the 2 out of the final 3 races.
Next year Williams will expect to stop Ferrari in order to win the title. Good
luck! - Raymond L C H - Hong Kong
(BD - KR, WD - AP, BQ - RS, WQ - JVe, BT - Williams, WT - Minardi, MID - JPM, LID
- MS, MIT - Williams, LIT - Ferrari, BR - NK, WR - AP.
QFormat - Not much difference, Point System - Not much difference, Parc Fermé - Much Better)
How could BAR drop
Jacques? He's still such an aggressive driver and he has the greatest
personality. I think I love him. Hopefully he'll be back next year - Lucidique
- Australia
(BD - KR, WD - NH, BQ - JT, WQ - DC, BT - McLaren, WT - BAR, MID - MW, LID
- HHF, MIT - Jaguar, LIT - BAR, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Much Better, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Much Better)
Schumacher sucks!
Kimi rules! Kimi whips Alonso's ass around any track, McLaren have definitely
nailed a new Senna two years ago - MH - Australia
(BD - KR, WD - MS, BQ - KR, WQ - MS, BT - McLaren, WT - Ferrari, MID - JPM, LID
- MS, MIT - McLaren, LIT - Ferrari, BR - CdM, WR - RF.
QFormat - Not much difference, Point System - Not much difference, Parc Fermé - Much Better)
Think about it
this way, who won the most races? Michael worked his ass off, but no matter
how hard he worked he still found himself fighting for the title. How fair is
that?
I think the points system sucks in that it was only designed to get Michael
out of the runnings, and we all know its true, but it did make the year a
little more interesting.
The best part of the season was watching Michael win the champs, no matter how
hard the FIA tried to get him to lose.
The worst part was Ralf being out of the competition after his crash, felt
real sorry for him. And also Felt REALLY sorry for Michael and Ralf for the
death of their mother. May she rest in peace and may God be with the
Schumachers - Jay W - South Africa
(BD - MS, WD - AP, BQ - MS, WQ - DC, BT - Ferrari, WT - Minardi, MID - KR, LID
- DC, MIT - Renault, LIT - Jaguar, BR - JW, WR - NK.
QFormat - Not much difference, Point System - Much Worse, Parc Fermé -
Slightly Worse)
Best part of
season was seeing a team (Renault) win other than Ferrari, Williams and
McLaren in a non rain race.
The worst part of the year was Juan Montoya getting penalized for the touch
with Rubens! - John B - USA
(BD - MS, WD - AP, BQ - JPM, WQ - DC, BT - Ferrari, WT - Sauber, MID - FA, LID
- JVi, MIT - Williams, LIT - Sauber, BR - JW, WR - AP.
QFormat - Much Worse, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Much Better)
Villeneuve and BAR
are the biggest joke in formula 1 history. I'm so glad he is out of Formula 1
as he is a waste of space and oxygen and very much an over-rated driver. He is
only matched by the pathetic excuse for a team that is BAR. They certainly
deserve each other. David Coulthard would be a close second for incompetence
behind the wheel of a F1 car having been thrashed by his rookie team-mate. And
lastly would be Jarno Trulli who once said that if he was in Ferrari he would
beat Schumacher. What a joke he cant even cope with his rookie teamates such
as Alonso and Button. Also these three drivers have something in common BIG
MOUTHS WITH VERY LITTLE TO BACK IT UP. Even Villeneuve with his 97 World
Championship that he nearly messed up even with a vastly superior car.
As for the rule changes in my mind they are cheating and communistic. Formula
1 is about technical expertise, money and great driving AND THAT'S HOW IT
SHOULD BE. Its not about changing rules to help teams that cant win a
championship win one. The rules have been designed to stop Ferrari and Michael
Schumacher because as a team they're too good
Qualifying is a joke, anyone can qualify well if they have an emptier tank
than other teams. How often did we see teams qualify higher than what they
normally would only to see them have to pit after 10 -15 laps PATHETIC.
The points system is laughable. M.S would've had championship 6 rapped up by
about race 13 under the old system.
Long live the king MICHAEL SCHUMACHER AND MAY WE LOOK FORWARD TO HIS PRESENCE
ON TOP OF THE PODIUM AGAIN AND AGAIN AS HE WRAPS UP TITLE NO 7 EVEN WITH THE
CHEATS AT THE FIA TRYING TO STOP HIM - Mathew T - Australia
(BD - MS, WD - JVi, BQ - MS, WQ - DC, BT - Ferrari, WT - BAR, MID - FA, LID
- JT, MIT - Renault, LIT - BAR, BR - CdM, WR - JW.
QFormat - Much Worse, Point System - Much Worse, Parc Fermé - Much Worse)
Jordan sucked
beyond belief, I used to respect EJ but a continuos stream of lost sponsors
and bad driver choices (sacking HHF, employing Sato and Firman) are
unforgivable, and it doesn't look like the end for their bad performance but
only the beginning, they also WRECKED FISI'S CAREER - Robin F - UK
(BD - FA, WD - AP, BQ - OP, WQ - JVe, BT - Renault, WT - Minardi, MID - FA, LID
- NH, MIT - Renault, LIT - Jordan, BR - CdM, WR - NK.
QFormat - Slightly Worse, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Slightly
Better)
It was fun to fill
this out without cheating by looking up the stats.
My impression was that Ralph got more poles than his brother this year and
certainly more than JPM, so I picked him as best qualifier --and even if he
didn't, I know he had a better year than last year!
Kimi is ready for the World Championship and if that doesn't make him the most
improved I give up!
Jacques, whom I love, had to be the least improved because when you've been
champion and fallen to his spot you look even worse than inferior
drivers!
I really don't know why I think Ralph Firman is the best rookie and I may be
wrong on this, but time will tell.
It was hard to pick a "worst team" but Sauber managed to do even
worse than BAR and that does it for me. Minardi can't be worst because they
have so much to overcome!
Poor Pizza Man! I'll be surprised if he doesn't end up as worst driver. If it
hadn't been for him it would have been hard to choose anyone.
Michael still is the best driver, no matter what you say. And I pray that he
retires now. There's nothing more to prove - Jim W - USA
(BD - MS, WD - AP, BQ - RS, WQ - JVe, BT - Ferrari, WT - Sauber, MID - KR, LID
- JVi, MIT - Renault, LIT - Sauber, BR - RF, WR - AP.
QFormat - Slightly Worse, Point System - Much Worse, Parc Fermé - Much Worse)
It was a good
season and it was great to see the distance between Ferrari and the rest of
the field come closer.
Being a Ferrari fan, I was happy to see Ferrari win and Michael win, but it
wasn't all that easy. Michelin really improved this season but Bridgestone
still has far better rain tyres (see Indianapolis).
I feel sorry for Jacques Villeneuve and can't wait to see how Mark Webber
fares in 2004 (I'm an Aussie).
My favourite driver would have to be Rubens Barrichello
I chose Michael Schumacher as the best driver because despite the fact his
performance this season compared to last was under par, he still came out on
out top and didn't crack.
I chose Antonio Pizzonia as the worst driver because he hardly rose above
around 10th place in a race and also because he got his contract terminated.
Few know though, he had the approval from Sir Frank Williams.
I chose Juan Pablo Montoya as the best qualifier because in most races he
qualified in the top 4 or so. He has improved and although he didn't convert
many of these great qualifying times, he still performed exceptionally
well.
I chose Nicolas Kiesa as the worst qualifier, which in some people's eyes may
be a little unfair because he only competed in like 6 races. But in those, you
could usually qualified in the back row.
I chose Williams as the best team even though Ferrari won the championship. I
must say I despised Williams at times because they were doing so well. The Michelin
tyres helped (except in rainy conditions) and they had the fastest car for
most of the season.
I chose Minardi as the worst team for obvious reasons. But you do have to feel
sorry for them because they are so bad. They finished last and not to mention
finished with zero points for the fifth time in six seasons.
I chose Mark Webber as the most improved driver. Yes, he did drive for Minardi
last year, but this year he raced like a champion. 3 or so top 3 qualifying
times and some excellent finishes.
I chose Jacques Villeneuve as the least improved driver because he was quite
disappointing this season considering he was the champion in 1997. To leave
Williams was a mistake and I'm sure he would have realised it by now.
I chose Renault as the the most improved team because they finished fourth in
the championship and managed to win a race with Fernando Alonso and produced
some terrific qualifying times.
I chose Ferrari as the least improved team, yes, call me harsh but I agree
with Nick K (also from Australia) it is hard to improve while at the top. But
I also think that they went slightly backwards. If Williams had've performed
better later in the season (most notably Indianopolis and Suzuka) they would
have won.
I chose Cristiano Da Matta as the best rookie because he qualified well, raced
well and also finished well. Expect him to shoot up the field in coming
years.
I chose Antonio Pizzonia as the worst rookie for the same reasons as I chose
him for worse driver.
The qualifying system is slightly worse because 12 laps was better because
your grid lap could be any lap and this year if you spun off on your second,
you had no chance to make up for it. And also one lap is not enough warm up
time realistically.
The points system is better because it meant the championship would be closer
and other teams would have better chances to get more points.
The parc fermé system is much worse because that does not just disadvantage
the top teams but if you damage your car in second qualifying you won't have
much luck in the race - Daniel P - Australia
(BD - MS, WD - NK, BQ - JPM, WQ - NK, BT - Williams, WT - Minardi, MID - MW, LID
- JVi, MIT - Renault, LIT - Ferrari, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Slightly Better, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Much
Worse)
Good, Great for MS
to surpass great Fangio in 2003.Time has come for change and as Williams
improves and drivers like Kimi and Alonso race with grit, the next season
would be something to watch. Schumi's experience battling with vigour of KR,
FA and of course JPM. JPM should have done better this year and it would be
2004 where he has to prove his talent as a racing great and shrug off the tag
of reckless driver with great skill - Arun D - India
(BD - FA, WD - DC, BQ - KR, WQ - NK, BT - Williams, WT - Sauber, MID - FA, LID
- JVe, MIT - Renault, LIT - BAR, BR - CdM, WR - NK.
QFormat - Slightly Worse, Point System - Slightly Better, Parc Fermé - Not
much difference)
The season was certainly
more interesting than the recent previous seasons. The qualifying, while
throwing up more interesting grids is particularly boring to watch. I feel the
biggest threat to the sport is the private teams having to use sub-standard
engines. This consigns them to the back of the grid and having no chance of
influencing a race other than being a backmarker getting in the way - Richard
R - Ireland
(BD - FA, WD - AP, BQ - RB, WQ - JVe, BT - Williams, WT - Jordan, MID - MW, LID
- DC, MIT - Renault, LIT - Jordan, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Not much difference, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Much
Better)
I hope the
majority of voters give thought to the overall resources available to
drivers/teams when voting, rather then taking a shortcut to thinking and
putting "Ferrari, Ferrari etc" - Rob D - Australia
(BD - CdM, WD - DC, BQ - MW, WQ - AP, BT - Renault, WT - Sauber, MID - MW, LID
- JVi, MIT - Toyota, LIT - Sauber, BR - CdM, WR - NK.
QFormat - Much Worse, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Much Worse)
Once again Michael
was the best. (Someone better do something about it or this is what will see
& hear for the next 2-3 years at least.) He performed when it mattered,
even though the car wasn't as good as he claimed it was.
There's only one driver in the current lot who could get close to Michael; Fernando
Alonso. He showed that he could perform well & even Win in a car that is
certainly not the most powerful or fastest. He is genuine. Wait 'till Renault
improves their car!
Kimi was good but you have to be more than good to beat Michael.
McLaren did a good job with that car although they disappointed us with that
farce of a new car for 2003.
I don't rate Ralf as much of a driver but I feel he cops a lot of unnecessary
criticism, simply because he is Michael's brother.
Although I like Barrichello as a nice bloke, I think he needs to improve his
consistency & some aspects of his driving. He tends to leave the door open
& suddenly shut it in others faces. I have seen it too many times.
However, he provided the best driving of the season - in the British Grand
Prix.
I didn't care much for Trulli before, but he did reasonably well this
season.
Jacques Villeneuve, I think its time!
As for the points system, I hope they will increase the gap between First
& Second. Otherwise, too many will settle for second & deprive us of
good Racing. Regards - Ryan T - Sri Lanka
(BD - MS, WD - JVi, BQ - MW, WQ - JVi, BT - Ferrari, WT - BAR, MID - JT, LID
- RB, MIT - Renault, LIT - Minardi, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Not much difference, Point System - Slightly Worse, Parc Fermé -
Slightly Better)
It is
disappointing to see how many races were decided by tires. The difference of
approach (rounded and aerodynamic vs wide patch traction) is a nice element
with tracks that favor one or the other. However, random weather is a huge
factor now. This is quite a bad thing.
It would be nice to see a single manufacturer for tires in a season. The
manufacturer would have available round or square tires, along with various
weather condition related tread patterns and rubber compounds. No team would
have access to a tire that the other teams didn't. Lots of choices, lots of
chances for one team to out smart another, but everyone is playing from the
same deck - Phillip C - USA
(BD - KR, WD - DC, BQ - KR, WQ - DC, BT - Ferrari, WT - Jordan, MID - FA, LID
- GF, MIT - BAR, LIT - Minardi, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Slightly Better, Point System - Slightly Better, Parc Fermé -
Slightly
Worse)
Competition was
exciting due to the increased performance of the Michelin teams and the points
system helped keep the title undecided until the end - Steven P - Australia
(BD - MS, WD - AP, BQ - MW, WQ - NK, BT - Williams, WT - Sauber, MID - FA, LID
- NH, MIT - Renault, LIT - Sauber, BR - CdM, WR - NK.
QFormat - Slightly Worse, Point System - Slightly Better, Parc Fermé - Much
Worse)
McLaren is going
to be the champion car next year 2004 - Bill C - Hong Kong
(BD - KR, WD - JVi, BQ - KR, WQ - DC, BT - Williams, WT - Jordan, MID - KR, LID
- JVi, MIT - Renault, LIT - Sauber, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Slightly Worse, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Much
Better)
McLaren gets best
team because of what they did with last year's car.
Ralf get worst driver because of his continued erratic behaviour. His
'scorched earth' policy cost several drivers points, and cost himself a chance
at a championship in what was, by the end of the season, clearly the best car
- Tom H - USA
(BD - KR, WD - RS, BQ - MW, WQ - DC, BT - McLaren, WT - Minardi, MID - KR, LID
- DC, MIT - Williams, LIT - Jordan, BR - CdM, WR - RF.
QFormat - Slightly Better, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Not much
difference)
I really missed
the race day morning warm-up. This is bad for the fans. It was an opportunity
for fans on race day to see the cars go around, before all the crowds arrived.
Now, we only see the cars when the race is on. By that stage, the track is
full and you cannot get a decent vantage point to watch (with the crowds) - Lindsay
C - Australia
(BD - MS, WD - JVi, BQ - MW, WQ - JVe, BT - Ferrari, WT - BAR, MID - FA, LID -
DC, MIT - Jaguar, LIT - Jordan, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Slightly Worse, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Much
Worse)
I am Ferrari fan
but let's give the truth to Renault and Alonso benefit of the doubt. Too bad
they will gave up the wide engine design. Good chassis just a little bit
underpowered but a good set up. The best improvement for a F1 team this year.
Regarding the points system, it is worst than I imagined. This system is
design to promote mediocrity not the value. Did you remember Keke Rosberg ?
Just one win and he was world Champion. Is this right? No offence for Kimi
being second but always wining is the main goal of any sportsman. Forget the
"if you want to be a winner you must compete first" the meaning is
"You have to compete and you have to win"
And regarding people who blame Schumy for his performances in Japan I really recommend
to read "The history of Formula One" and they going to find out one
name in the last 9 years - Michael SCHUMACHER - AND A LOT OF OTHER NAMES LIKE
PROST, HILL MANSEL, HAKINEN, VILLNEVUE, COULTHARD. Of course being 8th and
claim the crown is not a very nice situation but nobody check the
circumstances. I am open to discus the issues pro or contra in this matter.
Like the old roman say (Ferrari is in Italy former ancient Rome) "LET'S
GIVE TO CESAR WHAT IS HIS" so to Michael SCHUMACHER.
Until then "SALVE ET IL" My best regards, Marian - Romanian
living in the US
(BD - FA, WD - JPM, BQ - FA, WQ - NK, BT - Renault, WT - Jordan, MID - RS, LID
- JVi, MIT - Renault, LIT - BAR, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Much Worse, Point System - Much Worse, Parc Fermé - No much
difference)
The best driver
contest was very close. Both Kimi and Alonso deserve a lot of praise. They
excelled in and made up for their underperforming cars.
I like David Coulthard, but must say he showed the least improvement and
almost looked pedestrian. I am hoping he will do much better next year.
Ralf's performance was a big puzzle, but I feel he deserves more credit than
he gets. When the car is good, he completely excels. He need to attack when
chasing though!
Mark Webber looked impressive throughout the season.
I have been watching F1 for over a decade now and this has been one of the
best seasons. Although I was not a fan of the new qualifying or the parc
ferme, I was impressed with the results and excitement it brought.
One very excellent outcome of Parc Ferme was the terrific reliability of all
the cars!!
One sad thing though is that in the end Ferrari were still the winners in both
departments. Which I feel is what eventually the public will remember and
hence would not help F1 so much. But let us keep our fingers crossed and hope
the public visiting Grand Prix's improve next year!! Which helps us F1
fanatics to watch more exciting seasons of F1 - Vishy G - India
(BD - KR, WD - AP, BQ - MW, WQ - DC, BT - Williams, WT - Sauber, MID - JB, LID
- DC, MIT - Renault, LIT - Sauber, BR - CdM, WR - NK.
QFormat - Much Better, Point System - Much Better, Parc Fermé - Much Better)
As usual another
great season. As I predicted the team on the rise was Renault, but Ferrari
still on top. 2004 will be the best season yet as we watch Ferrari try to
remain on top and the likes of the Williams and McLaren take the trophy from
them.
Hopefully the new engine designs for Renault will help them compete. But I am
worried about engine longevity.
My only hope for '04 is that our Canadian boy Jacques can find a ride. My
suggestion to the F1 world is narrow minded and aimed at our friend Flav,
"Can that bum Trulli and hire a proven winner. The only other F1 world
champion Mr. Villeneuve" - James - Canada
(BD - MS, WD - AP, BQ - JPM, WQ - DC, BT - Ferrari, WT - Minardi, MID - FA,
LID - JVe, MIT - Renault, LIT - BAR, BR - JW, WR - AP.
QFormat - Slightly Worse, Point System - Slightly Better, Parc Fermé - Not
much difference)
I think Raikkonen
did the best with what he had to work with.
I said Williams for best team because they were so far off the pace at the
beginning of the year, and came back to be the fastest car on the track.
Webber and Jaguar were obvious. Cristiano da Matta is the best rookie. But who
else is there. And you have to admit, he looks quicker than Panis.
But I just want to say that I was a little disappointed with Toyota,
especially at the beginning of the season. They were so fast in pre-season
testing, only to come out and be so average in race trim.
Ralph Firman, I never liked. I think Eddie Irvine said it best, when he said
he has "no style". I know that car was pretty bad, but he always
looked like he was about to saw that steering wheel right off the car.
I know everyone wants to say Coulthard is so bad at qualifying, but I gave it
to Villeneuve. He always attributed it to race set up. But my feeling is that
if he would have set up better for qualifying, his racing skills would
over-come set up in the race, especially if he was in better position to
actually race. Too late now.
I'm a fan of Coulthard, but he should have been better. And for some reason, I
can't place Renault, or Ferrari in any category. Although they are both great,
with the the best young driver, and the best of all time respectively.
I don't think qualifying is as exciting, but it made for some interesting
racing. It was always a question of "what strategy are they on?" - John
N - USA
(BD - KR, WD - RF, BQ - KR, WQ - JVi, BT - Williams, WT - Minardi, MID - MW,
LID - DC, MIT - Jaguar, LIT - Jordan, BR - CdM, WR - RF.
QFormat - Slightly Worse, Point System - Slightly Better, Parc Fermé -
Slightly Worse)
It is much harder
this year!
For me it was a toss up between Alonso and Raikkonen for best driver as both
proved their worth despite their limited experience compared to their
team-mates but given that Alonso had 5 car related retirements and wasn't in
the fastest car and still finished 6th just behind Ralf Schumacher and 22
points ahead of his team-mate makes him the best this year in my view.
I rated Fisichella highly until this season. He simply just gave up and Ralph
Firman (the rookie) actually beat him a number of times. From someone that has
World Championship ambitions, his performance in a poor car was not
impressive.
Barrichello was the best qualifier, only twice did he qualify outside the top
5. Coulthard on the other hand was hopeless with 6 times outside the top
10!!
Best team was Williams, their drivers weren't best though!
I put Ferrari as the least improved team because they simply went backwards
and the Williams drivers handed them the championship.
I feel sorry for Jordan but they still deserve worst team. They should learn
from Sauber how to be lean yet have a decent car.
Whatever the BAR was, Villeneuve went backwards. He should have left that team
years ago.
da Matta is best rookie cause there was no contest but he did show some good
signs towards the end of the season and I am expecting a lot next season from
him.
Nicolas Kiesa was worst rookie. You don't qualify 6 or 7 seconds off the pace
even if you are in a Minardi. Sorry but you don't belong in F1 and Stoddart
should have known that!
The new Qualifying format sucks and the revised one is no different.
The new Points system isn't fair. Michael won by 2 points yet he won 6 races
compared to Raikkonen's 1! The old system wasn't great either!
The new Parc Ferme rules robbed us of comparing team-mates in qualifying! Graham R - Australia
(BD - FA, WD - GF, BQ - RB, WQ - DC, BT - Williams, WT - Jordan, MID - FA, LID
- JVi, MIT - Renault, LIT - Ferrari, BR - CdM, WR - NK.
QFormat - Much Worse, Point System - Slightly Worse, Parc Fermé - Slightly
Worse)
Schumacher -
"Yes, this is how it should be"
Raikkonen - "I hate Pizzonia and Jaguar"
Williams, Ralf and Montoya - Scratching heads and looking at each other
stupidly "Ummmmm, arrrrrr, ummmmm, arrrr............"
Coulthard - After being asked why Ron keeps him on, "I have the biggest
jaw in F1"
Alonso, Webber, Button, Da Matta - "Hmmm, delicious! But I wanna
Williams!"
Parc Ferme - great!
Rain interupted qualifying - joke!
Wimp's points system - each position should be worth an extra 50% or so Byron F - Australia
(BD - MS, WD - DC, BQ - MW, WQ - DC, BT - Williams, WT - Jordan, MID - FA, LID
- DC, MIT - Toyota, LIT - Jordan, BR - CdM, WR - NK.
QFormat - Much Worse, Point System - Much Worse, Parc Fermé - Much Better)
Only because of
the new points system did we see such a close championship otherwise Michael
was champion in Indianapolis .. Kimi, Ralf and Montoya need to raise their
level to a great extent still to beat the invincible Schumacher Sr.
Hope McLaren has the perfect car, Williams have a even stronger engine to beat
the Scuderia....Till then Ferrari rules ... painting the world RED!!! - Kapel
V - India
(BD - MS, WD - AP, BQ - JPM, WQ - NK, BT - Ferrari, WT - Jordan, MID - JPM,
LID - JW, MIT - Williams, LIT - Minardi, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Much Worse, Point System - Slightly Worse, Parc Fermé - Not much
difference)
Schumacher has to
be the least improved driver of 2003. He didn't improve on his position at
all. I suppose I am being a bit harsh, it is hard to improve when your number
one - Nick K - Australia (BD - MW, WD - AP, BQ - JPM, WQ - AP, BT - Jaguar, WT -
Minardi, MID - MW, LID - MS, MIT - Jaguar, LIT - Toyota, BR - CdM, WR - AP.
QFormat - Slightly Better, Point System - Not much difference, Parc Fermé -
Slightly worse)
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