Alonso's Truth Bomb: Luck, Not Skill, Behind Verstappen and Hamilton's Dominance
Sep.6 - Fernando Alonso has hit back at Mercedes boss Toto Wolff's claims that Red Bull 'built' a winning team especially around Max Verstappen.
Rather, the former two-time champion says F1's last two dominant drivers - Verstappen and Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton - simply lucked into their winning cars just as the regulations changed.
"Hamilton and Verstappen did not build great teams," Alonso told De Telegraaf. "It was changes in the regulations.
"When Lewis went to Mercedes, he didn't build anything. It was simply a change in regulations that helped him," he added, referring to the dawning of the 'hybrid' era in 2014.
"When Max joined Toro Rosso and Red Bull, Hamilton was still winning everything. He did not build a winning Red Bull team," Alonso, 42, continued.
"In 2021 it was very even between them, and now, with the change of regulations from last year, Red Bull has won every race so far this season.
"Ultimately, you just need to be in the right place at the right time," he explained. "So I don't know exactly what they mean when it's said that you 'build' teams around you."
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Quite agree, as I have said before any driver needs the best car to win and the best car makes its driver look like it’s a walk in the park unless it’s a marginal difference. Compare 2021 Max with 2022 & 2023 Max.
They all need a good car and in the case of Hamilton it was without doubt the engine had an awful lot to do with it. I do believe that Mercedes buying Braun who had designed a super car the year before and giving the team an open cheque book with no limits a few years before helped a lot as well.Verstappen has the same car as Perez but is far faster than him
I rest my case.
Drivers can have a large impact on team motivation and organizational effectiveness but seldom do. The last I recall that did was Michael Schumacher at Ferrari. He was rare in having a very strong relationship with the Team Principal and Technical Director as well as with the technical staff. He matured into this role, but managed it to great effectiveness to the benefit of the team. Max has and is developing a unique capability that few drivers have had. That is the ability to go fast while conserving the car, changing the driving style to not overstress the car in some areas while still maximizing the speed advantage in other areas. This characteristic is one exhibited by only a few drivers that I know of, Fangio, Clark, Stewart and Michael Schumacher.
Well put. I think luck may be a part of his success but he sees and feels everything in that car and response accordingly. His biggest plus he makes few mistakes under pressure. That separates him from other drivers.