Who is the Greatest F1 Driver of all time?

[Freds GTV 2001]

Who is the Greatest F1 Driver of all time ?

Based on statistics or personal appeal or any other factor you consider important who do you think is the Greatest F1 Driver of all time.

the stats probably say schumacher...but for me the greatest is Senna....

[divadiva]

For me it has to be Fernando Alonso

[Freds GTV 2001]

I reckon Senna is the greatest of all time. Not only was he Sensational but he was an inspiration to everyone around him. Unfortunately cant comment on people before the 80s as I wasnt watching F1 then but Senna easily for me is the greatest.

If he wasnt killed I am sure he would have taken many more championships off Shumacher.

The stats don't lie.

Schumacher for mine. With all his flaws.

[wayne-dear]

John Surtees.................

[kayem]

I only saw him race when I was a child, but I've been following the sport ever since, and for me it's The Greatest Living Englishman, Sir Stirling Moss. I was taken to see Fangio race once, I was probably still in nappies at the time, but he was equally great. It's almost impossible to compare sportsman from different generations, but for me the sheer elegance and precision of Stirling's driving wins it for me, he made most others racing against him look amateurish, and I've never seen that in any of the hundreds of races I've attended or watched since then.

Why isn't Taki Inoue on the list? (For those too young to remember, you can find Taki's most memorable moment on youtube).

[symon]

Gilles Villeneuve.

The only time he had a car capable of winning the championship he had to obey team orders and let Scheckter win.

On other occasions he had stunning victories in cars that really shouldn't have been capable of winning.


Also not mentioned is Ronnie Peterson.

[NineOneSix]

Ayrton Senna, if he was still alive he'd set a record Schumie could never grasp! I always used to follow F1 up until then and after his tragic accident I kinda lost the spirit of the sport.

[markr129]

Has to be Juan Manuel Fangio!

[steveisfrowning]

Villeneuve for me.

[alfacool]

Ive gone for Senna.
But the stats say Schumacher.
For me Senna was a better all round racer, his duels with our Nige were legendary.

[Gary Slegg]

Jim Clark for me...

[Freds GTV 2001]

Yea id say Senna was absolutely sensational when he was in his element to be Number 1 at any cost. Where as Shumacher is more rational and logical in his approach.

I would also say Hamilton is the closest Ive seen to anyone nearing Sennas style and determination of the current drivers.

Funny how no one has mentioned Prost or Piquet both of whom won 4 world championships

[steveisfrowning]

Schuey doesn't get it for me, because he was a shocking cheat.

Originally Posted by Freds GTV 2001

Funny how no one has mentioned Prost or Piquet both of whom won 4 world championships

Piquet = 3 titles.

Prost was a great driver, undoubtedly. Had he been around in a different era to Senna, he'd have been untouchable.

[davieb156]

Has to be Senna for me, top class. Schumacher a very close second.

[Freds GTV 2001]

Originally Posted by HSTDriver

Piquet = 3 titles.

Prost was a great driver, undoubtedly. Had he been around in a different era to Senna, he'd have been untouchable.

Sorry Piquet 3

[dxechick]

Not strictly F1 but Tazio Nuvolari for me

There are some greats on the list, but I'm voting other and nominating Nigel Mansell.

Statistically there are better drivers.....but when you take into consideration pure grit, awesome speed when the car was right, and some of the finest overtakes of his era IMO, he is the best of the lot.

[Freds GTV 2001]

Originally Posted by Mymatemarmite

There are some greats on the list, but I'm voting other and nominating Nigel Mansell.

Statistically there are better drivers.....but when you take into consideration pure grit, awesome speed when the car was right, and some of the finest overtakes of his era IMO, he is the best of the lot.

Yeah I read his autobiography on how he sold his own house to get into F1. That was a huge risk that paid off. I could never even think about selling my house for anything like that. But he had the foresight and belief he could do it.

[Joss]

Being youngish I'd have to go with Senna although Fangio came a close second followed by schummy.

[kayem]

Originally Posted by Freds GTV 2001

Yeah I read his autobiography on how he sold his own house to get into F1. That was a huge risk that paid off. I could never even think about selling my house for anything like that. But he had the foresight and belief he could do it.

Not entirely accurate, Mansell sold his house to get into F3, something that he never tired of reminding us about, and as his fellow drivers sometimes reminded him, he was more fortunate than almost all of them, in that he actually owned a house he was able to sell. I'm not denying Nigels bravery and speed on occasions later in his career, but having worked with him at Lotus where he had few fans in the team, my enthusiasm is well under control.

[chuckyb]

I'm surprised no-one has mentioned Jackie Stewart. His victory by a number of minutes in Nurburgring has to be one of the greatest motor-racing victories of all times. I think his car control was the best of all. Obviously one cannot compare drivers from different eras but to me, Jackie Stewart, is by far the best of all time!