Who will be the next first time WDC?
Discussion
Contenders are of course Russell, Norris, Piastri and Leclerc.
But are they?
My son made an interesting suggestion that the next first time WDC is not yet in F1. This is on the basis that the current contenders are all a bit too 'nice'. Not sure I fully agree with this but I get his point.
Anyway... off you go!
But are they?
My son made an interesting suggestion that the next first time WDC is not yet in F1. This is on the basis that the current contenders are all a bit too 'nice'. Not sure I fully agree with this but I get his point.
Anyway... off you go!
Whilst Max remains at RB with a dominant car, the only first timer I can see getting close is Norris, maybe Piastri.
The only way I can see Russell or Leclerc winning is if they ended up in a car significantly better than the rest, I don't think they have what it takes to do a full season head-to-head without the pressure getting to them. Although I would love to be proved wrong.
The only way I can see Russell or Leclerc winning is if they ended up in a car significantly better than the rest, I don't think they have what it takes to do a full season head-to-head without the pressure getting to them. Although I would love to be proved wrong.
Let’s all hope for a properly competitive season sometime soon.
Max will keep winning so long as RB don’t f*** up for the next couple of years.
George is unlikely to win while Lewis is still around and looking for #8, but could well do after the GOAT retires.
A dominant McLaren would be an epic battle between Lando and Oscar
Charles is the most likely winner from a dominant Ferrari.
New rules in 2026, so anything could happen that year.
So, I guess it depends on which manufacturer can come up with something able to challenge the RB in the near future.
I’d give odds of 100/1 bar those mentioned, I’m pretty sure there’s no-one about to tear F2 apart in 2024.
Max will keep winning so long as RB don’t f*** up for the next couple of years.
George is unlikely to win while Lewis is still around and looking for #8, but could well do after the GOAT retires.
A dominant McLaren would be an epic battle between Lando and Oscar
Charles is the most likely winner from a dominant Ferrari.
New rules in 2026, so anything could happen that year.
So, I guess it depends on which manufacturer can come up with something able to challenge the RB in the near future.
I’d give odds of 100/1 bar those mentioned, I’m pretty sure there’s no-one about to tear F2 apart in 2024.
Any of those mentioned could be the next WDC. If they are provided a car like LH had between 2014 and 2021 and Max has had for the last few years. The only problem they do have is their teammates are strong and will steal points from them and will end up in fall out. Unless they have a Checo or Bottas as a team mate even if you get a great car there are no guarantees.
This does lead to the debate of why are all the rest allowed to hang around earning a living when nobody thinks they can win a title?
I’m always surprised there isn’t more turn over of drivers. You would think when it becomes clear a driver isn’t going to make it to the top that would be that, onto the next F2 champion see if he/she is the next max.
There always seems to be plenty of driver in the awkward grey area of having won F2 with no F1 seat to go to. Which leaves them with the option of give up on F1 or sit in a reserve seat hoping for the odd practice session to be thrown your way.
Surely ever team should Be looking for the next super star. Would make more sense to me to give a 3 year contract and if they haven’t shown the level of skill required. Oust them for the next talent, at some point you will end up with a future champion in your car.
I’m always surprised there isn’t more turn over of drivers. You would think when it becomes clear a driver isn’t going to make it to the top that would be that, onto the next F2 champion see if he/she is the next max.
There always seems to be plenty of driver in the awkward grey area of having won F2 with no F1 seat to go to. Which leaves them with the option of give up on F1 or sit in a reserve seat hoping for the odd practice session to be thrown your way.
Surely ever team should Be looking for the next super star. Would make more sense to me to give a 3 year contract and if they haven’t shown the level of skill required. Oust them for the next talent, at some point you will end up with a future champion in your car.
ntiz said:
This does lead to the debate of why are all the rest allowed to hang around earning a living when nobody thinks they can win a title?
I’m always surprised there isn’t more turn over of drivers. You would think when it becomes clear a driver isn’t going to make it to the top that would be that, onto the next F2 champion see if he/she is the next max.
There always seems to be plenty of driver in the awkward grey area of having won F2 with no F1 seat to go to. Which leaves them with the option of give up on F1 or sit in a reserve seat hoping for the odd practice session to be thrown your way.
Surely ever team should Be looking for the next super star. Would make more sense to me to give a 3 year contract and if they haven’t shown the level of skill required. Oust them for the next talent, at some point you will end up with a future champion in your car.
It's a by-product of the reduced testing IMO, the need for development season on season now trumps taking a punt on the next big thing.I’m always surprised there isn’t more turn over of drivers. You would think when it becomes clear a driver isn’t going to make it to the top that would be that, onto the next F2 champion see if he/she is the next max.
There always seems to be plenty of driver in the awkward grey area of having won F2 with no F1 seat to go to. Which leaves them with the option of give up on F1 or sit in a reserve seat hoping for the odd practice session to be thrown your way.
Surely ever team should Be looking for the next super star. Would make more sense to me to give a 3 year contract and if they haven’t shown the level of skill required. Oust them for the next talent, at some point you will end up with a future champion in your car.
StevieBee said:
My son made an interesting suggestion that the next first time WDC is not yet in F1. This is on the basis that the current contenders are all a bit too 'nice'. Not sure I fully agree with this but I get his point.
I don't necessarily agree with his reasoning, but the outcome could be the same. I can even foresee a future season with no past WDC present, and a guaranteed first time winner. If RB and Max can keep winning until the end of his current contract in 2028, then by that time both Hamilton and Alonso will likely have retired, and if Max is bored of winning by then he will go too. 2029 is too far away to know which current and future drivers will be in the mix, but of the current crop you'd think Norris, Piastri, Russell, Sainz, Leclerc and Albon could be potential champions in the right team at the right time.The other unknown is that we don't yet know which team will ace the 2026 regulation changes. The chassis/aero changes are expected to be relatively minor, so hopefully most will have a good handle on the ground effects by then so there won't be a major shake up on that front. The engine situation is less clear. It's possible for someone to make a significant breakthrough, such as Mercedes did in 2014, or equally for one of the current frontrunners to produce a relative dud.
What we'd all hope for is for them all to ace the new regs so we get a super competitive championship involving many teams and drivers, but likely it will just be the dawn of another slightly different era of domination by one team or another, so the next first time WDC will likely be whoever replaces Lewis or Max when they retire.
ntiz said:
Surely ever team should Be looking for the next super star. Would make more sense to me to give a 3 year contract and if they haven’t shown the level of skill required. Oust them for the next talent, at some point you will end up with a future champion in your car.
Teams have enormous amounts of data. They know who has the skill and who doesn't. Where they are on the grid is primarily a function of the car not their ability.For the "number twos" that are performing at the same level as their team mates that is often what the team want. The last thing they want is two super stars.
GlobalRacer said:
ntiz said:
Surely ever team should Be looking for the next super star. Would make more sense to me to give a 3 year contract and if they haven’t shown the level of skill required. Oust them for the next talent, at some point you will end up with a future champion in your car.
Teams have enormous amounts of data. They know who has the skill and who doesn't. Where they are on the grid is primarily a function of the car not their ability.For the "number twos" that are performing at the same level as their team mates that is often what the team want. The last thing they want is two super stars.
Europa Jon said:
Well Stevie, I agree with those names apart from Le Clerc. He makes too many silly mistakes, even on those rare occasions when team strategy is good. Time will tell...
Leclerc makes mistakes pushing to beat a superior car. If Ferrari can give him a car which is fast enough (and consistently so over the length of the tyre life), I would put money on him winning a WDC.Well, I wouldn't actually bet because I don't do that.
ntiz said:
This does lead to the debate of why are all the rest allowed to hang around earning a living when nobody thinks they can win a title?
I’m always surprised there isn’t more turn over of drivers. You would think when it becomes clear a driver isn’t going to make it to the top that would be that, onto the next F2 champion see if he/she is the next max.
There always seems to be plenty of driver in the awkward grey area of having won F2 with no F1 seat to go to. Which leaves them with the option of give up on F1 or sit in a reserve seat hoping for the odd practice session to be thrown your way.
Surely ever team should Be looking for the next super star. Would make more sense to me to give a 3 year contract and if they haven’t shown the level of skill required. Oust them for the next talent, at some point you will end up with a future champion in your car.
How are you judging the level of skill required?I’m always surprised there isn’t more turn over of drivers. You would think when it becomes clear a driver isn’t going to make it to the top that would be that, onto the next F2 champion see if he/she is the next max.
There always seems to be plenty of driver in the awkward grey area of having won F2 with no F1 seat to go to. Which leaves them with the option of give up on F1 or sit in a reserve seat hoping for the odd practice session to be thrown your way.
Surely ever team should Be looking for the next super star. Would make more sense to me to give a 3 year contract and if they haven’t shown the level of skill required. Oust them for the next talent, at some point you will end up with a future champion in your car.
F1 is about man and machine. A sizeable percentage of the grid would have won the title if they'd had last year's Red Bull instead of Max.
Conversely, hugely talented as he is, Max wouldn't have won the title had he been driving a Mercedes.
The top half of the grid all believe they have two drivers capable of winning a title.......possibly excluding Red Bull.
Of the bottom half - Haas, Sauber & Williams - they all know that they don't have the infrastructure for a title shot and therefore won't attract that kind of driver anyway, therefore are looking for a different kind of driver.
The only team with your philosophy is possible Alpha Tauri - historically a breeding ground for the next Vettel or the next Verstappen. Seems now though that the talent in the lower formulae is pretty thin.
Finally, on this topic, some drivers bloom late on. Jenson Button being a good example, Nigel Mansell another.
If you'd have asked Flavio Briatore in 2001 if Button could have won a title, even in a fairly dominant car, he'd have probably laughed in your face.
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