What PlanetF1 readers had to say: Verstappen, Aston Martin, Perez and more
13 Jan 2025 7:30 AM
The start of the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Let’s look through what some of PlanetF1.com’s most informed commenters had to say about the latest F1 news.
PlanetF1.com’s busy comments sections are frequently the scene of informed debate and eloquent conversations, in amongst the bickering. Looking through our comments sections from Sunday, here are our top five comments.
Comments of the day – Sunday 12 January
“Gilles Villeneuve was one of the fastest drivers to ever sit in an F1 car. Had they fuelled his car correctly at Zolder 1979 he would have won the title, following a superb recovery drive to 3rd which was snuffed out when his car ran out of fuel on the last lap.
“On a soaking wet track at Watkins Glen final practice in 1979 Gilles did a lap 9 seconds faster than his newly crowned F1 champion teammate Jody Sheckter…..
“And those last few laps of the 1979 French GP at Dijon are legendary. Nowadays Villeneuve and Arnoux would have had about 2 mins of time penalties each, and goodness knows how many points on their license.”
- Dave RG
Dave was responding to Elizabeth Blackstock’s feature on “Eight F1 drivers we can’t believe never won a championship”.
With Villeneuve featuring on the list, Dave was suitably impressed by what he’d seen of the late Canadian racer’s prowess behind the wheel.
Read: Eight F1 drivers we can’t believe never won a championship
“It’s got to be hard on Checo to have someone like this as a father. As the son you are heavily influenced by your father and you want believe in what he says. But Papa Perez is delusional. Completely out of touch with reality. I appreciate the enthusiasm but a little measure of realism would go a long way.”
- Xmotor Motovation
Over the weekend, Sergio Perez broke his silence for the first time since departing Red Bull Racing, saying he will take a few months out before deciding whether to pursue an F1 return opportunity. Following this, his father also spoke out, as reported by Henry Valantine in our story. Perez Senior said that F1 isn’t yet in his son’s past and that “what is coming will be historic”.
By all accounts, Xmotor Motovation doesn’t agree with Papa Perez’s assessment of the situation!
Read: Defiant Sergio Perez message issued by his father after Red Bull exit
“I started in 1990 so some of what I will tell you is secondhand and some of it from personal knowledge. Elio was an incredible driver, and beating a young Nigel shouldn’t be held against Nigel any more than Danny beating Max. Drivers don’t always burst onto the scene, some do, some don’t.
“Frank and Patrick loved Nigel in their car, and his performances against his then number one driver Nelson propelled him into their hearts. He almost won the championship twice before he eventually did but a nasty accident and a blown tyre stopped both charges.
“That brings us to Nigel’s time at Ferrari. Did you know he was the last driver to be signed by Enzo? A proud honour for any driver. Ferrari certainly didn’t treat him as an equal to Alain and it wasn’t a secret. Nigel retired largely because of that.
“And that brings us to Williams again. Frank moved heaven and earth to secure Nigel’s signature, he was that good. Nigel then repaid the team in 1992. What a great driver he was, I wish we’d had him and as it turned out in a roundabout way we maybe could have had timings worked better.
“As for Max, I don’t need to see him against a Charles, Carlos, Lewis or Fernando, etc, his talent is very well known. I’m told the TPs voted him driver of the season and I read it was unanimous.
“As I say though, fans often have different takes and I’m not here to convince anybody of anything. I can only tell you what I think and what I know.”
- Ex Pitlane Monkey
A spirited debate between Ex Pitlane Monkey, Mad Max, and Lucas in our comment section on Henry Valantine’s report on how Helmut Marko believes Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton could get near to Max Verstappen in the same car.
With various other drivers entering the conversation, our commenters managed to make their points without descending into insult-slinging, and it resulted in a gem of a comment from a former pitlane staffer!
Read: Revealed: The two F1 stars who could only get ‘near’ to Max Verstappen at Red Bull
“There is little doubt that, assuming you have a good car, the best way to win the WDC is to have a great driver and a good drive next to him. Epitomised by Michael Schumacher and Max Verstappen at Ferrari and Red Bull respectively. Two A-list drivers tend to become fixated with fighting each other rather than fighting.for the team – look no further than Hamilton and Alonso at Mclaren in 2007. Of course it doesn’t matter who drives if the car is head shoulders better than the rest – Senna and Prost at Mclaren.
“Ferrari decided to contract the second driver as a number two to Michael. No evidence that is true for Max, although it’s true that, apart from Daniel Ricciardo no one has ever come close to Max. From Red Bull’s perspective it keeps Max (and Jos!) relatively content but it did backfire this year because the lack of points scored by Chec0 lost the WCC.”
- F1 Roborbob
Oliver Harden’s article on how Lando Norris expects to have to fight again to earn McLaren’s support ahead of Oscar Piastri, and a potential return to ‘Papaya Rules’, resulted in this two-parter comment from F1 Roborbob.
Pointing out that a lead driver and a strong supporting role is the optimal way to fight for a title, they suggested that two equal drivers will start focusing on each other too much…
Read Next: Lando Norris confirms ‘privileges’ expire as McLaren undergo ‘refresh’
“Things almost can’t look more good for Aston Martin and Alonso. Cardille, Newey, Cowell and all look almighty. Just to be working well together, and not for their egos to crash.
I just hope their contracts don’t include making ridiculous statements on how Lance is the best driver that ever graced F1.
With Aston Martin making the news heading into the weekend as CEO Andy Cowell appointed himself as team boss, Thomas Maher’s analysis and explanation of the management changes struck a chord with Kumba.
The Silverstone-based squad’s changes will be one of the main talking points of the year, and the question raised by Kumba is pertinent – can so many great, top-level engineers work together without egos clashing?
Read: Revealed: The truth behind Aston Martin’s management changes for F1 2025