Grand Prix Rejects

DOSBoot wrote:Okay, here's some more suggestions for you.

"Something Wicked this Way Comes" Awarded to the team that were constructors champions the previous year, only to have a dismal season the following year.

1. Ferrari in 1980.
2. Lotus in 1979.
3. Williams in 1998.

"Show me the Money!!!" Awarded to the drivers who had such a ridiculous salary, you wonder how the team stayed afloat.

1. Kimi Raikkonen at Ferrari.
2. Nigel Mansell at Williams.
3. Niki Lauda at Brabham.

What about adding Jenson to the second list. 3 years after being Honda they have already been through 2 guises

DOSBoot wrote:Okay, here's some more suggestions for you.

"Something Wicked this Way Comes" Awarded to the team that were constructors champions the previous year, only to have a dismal season the following year.

1. Ferrari in 1980.
2. Lotus in 1979.
3. Williams in 1998.

Williams in 1988
Benetton in 1996
Ferrari in 2005
Renault in 2007
Ferrari in 2009
Mercedes in 2010

DOSBoot wrote:"Show me the Money!!!" Awarded to the drivers who had such a ridiculous salary, you wonder how the team stayed afloat.

1. Kimi Raikkonen at Ferrari.
2. Nigel Mansell at Williams.
3. Niki Lauda at Brabham.

Ralf Schumacher at Toyota.

I'm a newcomer here so don't know who has been talked about in the past as such. In another thread I asked whether Bertrand Gachot was suitable reject material, but he scores too many points under the current system.

But it was suggested this makes a fair argument for a 'lucky bastard'. To summarise, under the new points system he got 8 points thus saving him, but under the old system he got just 5 across six years which is a long career for someone who only saw the chequered flag on occasion.

Okay so he drove for 6 years, but only got 5 points in his career, half the time couldn't even qualify, most races ended in retirement, a couple of years didn't even see him finish a single race. Maybe it didn't help he drove for Coloni and Pacific which would hamper anyone.

I suppose his big break was with Jordan, because he finished 7 races which accounts for nearly half of the GPs he did finish and he scored 4 of his 5 career points with Jordan. But he squandered this opportunity to use his talent big time by being imprisoned for two months mid-season after assaulting a taxi driver and Jordan dropped him. In the years after that he was picked up by Pacific and it was nearly all DNQs or retirements as his F1 career died.

I do wonder if that deserves a special category, are there any other drivers that binned their careers with a term in prison?

He does come across a bit more sympathetically in this interview - http://www.grandprix.com/ft/ft00094.html
But really, he should have known that it's not okay to carry CS-spray in the UK.

Howard A Treesong wrote:But it was suggested this makes a fair argument for a 'lucky bastard'. To summarise, under the new points system he got 8 points thus saving him, but under the old system he got just 5 across six years which is a long career for someone who only saw the chequered flag on occasion.

'Lucky Bastard' is actually a reference to this on the main F1 Rejects website.

Maybe he could be a runner up.

Possibly an award for drivers who had serious injuries, and were never the same afterwards.

3. ???
2. Felipe Massa
1. Olivier Panis

I don't have a 3rd place yet.

redbulljack14 wrote:Possibly an award for drivers who had serious injuries, and were never the same afterwards.

3. ???
2. Felipe Massa
1. Olivier Panis

I don't have a 3rd place yet.

Karl Wendlinger

stupot94 wrote:

redbulljack14 wrote:Possibly an award for drivers who had serious injuries, and were never the same afterwards.

3. ???
2. Felipe Massa
1. Olivier Panis

I don't have a 3rd place yet.

Karl Wendlinger

How did I miss him? ROTT then for me.

redbulljack14 wrote:Possibly an award for drivers who had serious injuries, and were never the same afterwards.

3. ???
2. Felipe Massa
1. Olivier Panis

I don't have a 3rd place yet.

Graham Hill would be a good place on that list. He was a race winner at Monaco in 1969, but after his accident at the United States Grand Prix later that year, he only managed to score fourteen points in a period of six years. None of them on the podium either. I've thought of a good name for it as well. I call it: "I've Seen Better Days".

I'm not sure if Johnny Herbert lived up to his full potential after nearly losing both feet in Formula 3000.

"The Home Curse" - top drivers who never seemed to get a good result in their home race despite being very successful elsewhere:

3: Jenson Button
2: Mark Webber (still can't believe his joint-best result there was with Minardi!)
1: Rubens Barrichello

I guess Vettel might be starting to get an honorary mention too.

James1978 wrote:"The Home Curse" - top drivers who never seemed to get a good result in their home race despite being very successful elsewhere:

3: Jenson Button
2: Mark Webber (still can't believe his joint-best result there was with Minardi!)
1: Rubens Barrichello

I guess Vettel might be starting to get an honorary mention too.

This a good one as well.

James1978 wrote:"The Home Curse" - top drivers who never seemed to get a good result in their home race despite being very successful elsewhere:

3: Jenson Button
2: Mark Webber (still can't believe his joint-best result there was with Minardi!)
1: Rubens Barrichello

I guess Vettel might be starting to get an honorary mention too.

What about Graham Hill? Won 5 times at Monaco yet never in Britain.

James1978 wrote:"The Home Curse" - top drivers who never seemed to get a good result in their home race despite being very successful elsewhere:

3: Jenson Button
2: Mark Webber (still can't believe his joint-best result there was with Minardi!)
1: Rubens Barrichello

I guess Vettel might be starting to get an honorary mention too.

Good one there. I can't really dispute you're top three very much. I too am still amazed that Mark hasn't won, or at least has gotten a podium at his home race. I think Ronnie Peterson would also be a good choice. He came close to winning it in 1973, but cruelly, Denny Hulme got the lead at the last lap, and had to settle for second. He would never win an Formula 1 race in Sweden.

I personally would replace Jenson Button with Jacques Villeneuve or Graham Hill.

Yes I agree actually, Villeneuve is a good one, though he did have one podium in 1996 - though Button has finished the points at Silverstone plenty of times without a podium, I reckon that outweighs one podium and no other points finishes!

Here's another suggestion.

"Fast, but Fragile" Awarded to the driver, or team, who scored a high number of pole positions in a season, only to not achieve the same success as many thought.

1. Nelson Piquet: 1984
2. Renault: 1982
3. Niki Lauda: 1974

Sebastian Vettel last year would be a prime candidate for that award

Or Montoya in 2002.

Wizzie wrote:Sebastian Vettel last year would be a prime candidate for that award

He won a World Championship and the team Constructors. Isnt that enough already??

stupot94 wrote:

Wizzie wrote:Sebastian Vettel last year would be a prime candidate for that award

He won a World Championship and the team Constructors. Isnt that enough already??

The thing is, he should have walked that Championship, but he and Red Bull kept throwing away points.

DOSBoot wrote:Here's another suggestion.

"Fast, but Fragile" Awarded to the driver, or team, who scored a high number of pole positions in a season, only to not achieve the same success as many thought.

1. Nelson Piquet: 1984
2. Renault: 1982
3. Niki Lauda: 1974

Williams in 1991 and McLaren 2005 probably had the beating of the real champions pace-wise but were always thwarted by poor reliability.

Also Ayrton Senna in 1985. And Gerhard Berger in 1989 won't have scored that many poles but was almost always on the first two rows, but only finished 3 races!!

East Londoner wrote:

stupot94 wrote:

Wizzie wrote:Sebastian Vettel last year would be a prime candidate for that award

He won a World Championship and the team Constructors. Isnt that enough already??

The thing is, he should have walked that Championship, but he and Red Bull kept throwing away points.

Well if Sebastian throws away the championship this year, That would be a prime candidate

stupot94 wrote:Well if Sebastian throws away the championship this year, That would be a prime candidate

That'd probably deserve a category of its own.

stupot94 wrote:

Wizzie wrote:Sebastian Vettel last year would be a prime candidate for that award

He won a World Championship and the team Constructors. Isnt that enough already??

Red Bull could have, should have and would have cakewalked last year's championship had they not kept stuffing everything up.

Besides Vettel score 10 pole positions last year and only converted 3 of them into victories.

Jeroen Krautmeir wrote:

stupot94 wrote:Well if Sebastian throws away the championship this year, That would be a prime candidate

That'd probably deserve a category of its own.

Reject of the season

Here's another one.

"If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It." Awarded to the Formula 1 tracks that were great at one time, only to get screwed up due to safety concerns.

1. Hockenhiem
2. Kyalami
3. Imola

DOSBoot wrote:Here's another one.

"If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It." Awarded to the Formula 1 tracks that were great at one time, only to get screwed up due to safety concerns.

1. Hockenhiem
2. Kyalami
3. Imola

Then rename the award, because Imola was broken. Two (almost three) drivers dying on a single weekend would perfectly fit my definition of a broken racetrack.

Klon wrote:

DOSBoot wrote:Here's another one.

"If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It." Awarded to the Formula 1 tracks that were great at one time, only to get screwed up due to safety concerns.

1. Hockenhiem
2. Kyalami
3. Imola

Then rename the award, because Imola was broken. Two (almost three) drivers dying on a single weekend would perfectly fit my definition of a broken racetrack.

Well Tamburello was dangerous, Derek Daly fortold serious accidents at that corner. (Alboreto, Piquet, obviously Senna)

But to be honest the corner where Ratzenberger very sadly had his accident wasnt to blame but due to a mechanical failure.
But after a weekend like that changes did probably have to be made.


Spain and Spa 94 were ruined, but thankfully they were changed back

Klon wrote:Then rename the award, because Imola was broken. Two (almost three) drivers dying on a single weekend would perfectly fit my definition of a broken racetrack.

Regardless, I think it was nice track messed up. I'm not saying it was a bad thing to change it, it's just that I think they could have come up with a better design to improve safety.

stupot94 wrote:
Spain and Spa 94 were ruined, but thankfully they were changed back

Those were, in my opinion, a botched and stupid job that was thought about without a hint of common sense and, worse still, an insult to the memory of Ratzenberger and Senna.

The 1986 - 90 version of Paul Ricard.

For "Salt Lake Olympics", it could be added the Earth-livery for Honda. I know it might not be configured as sponsorship but that thing was hideous...

Ah, an old thread bump. Here's another one I came up with.

"Gone for Broke" Awarded to the driver who seemed like a victory was out of reach, only to win it outright.

1. Jenson Button: Canada 2011
2. Olivier Panis: Monaco 1996
3. Riccardo Patrase: Monaco 1982

DOSBoot wrote:Ah, an old thread bump. Here's another one I came up with.

"Gone for Broke" Awarded to the driver who seemed like a victory was out of reach, only to win it outright.

1. Jenson Button: Canada 2011
2. Olivier Panis: Monaco 1996
3. Riccardo Patrase: Monaco 1982

John Watson's win at Long Beach in 1983 surely must qualify in this category.

Wizzie wrote:

DOSBoot wrote:Ah, an old thread bump. Here's another one I came up with.

"Gone for Broke" Awarded to the driver who seemed like a victory was out of reach, only to win it outright.

1. Jenson Button: Canada 2011
2. Olivier Panis: Monaco 1996
3. Riccardo Patrase: Monaco 1982

John Watson's win at Long Beach in 1983 surely must qualify in this category.

Oh yeah, I forgot about that one. 23rd to 1st is one hell of an achievement. Although by then he was already known to be a guy who would start at the back, and finish near or at the front.

Italy 2011 for Panelbeaters Alert anyone?

Surely PdlR for 'Hang Up The Keys'?

Or Jarno Trulli?

(It's seriously winding me up that him and PdlR have got drives for next season and Sutil hasn't).

Barrichello's a slightly differetn matter as I really want to see him have 20 seasons in F1, which to equate to exactly half his life!

James1978 wrote:Jarno Trulli?

Your wish may have been granted since Ricciardo has been linked there.

Why hasnt anyone really hinted at Schumacher yet for Hang up the keys?* Kimi Raikkonen if he does come back next year and is absolutely useless.


Mind you some of his drives in '11 have been quite spectacular. He will get a podium next year