Prasius

iTrader: (1)

Come on - he's a F1 driver, in his first season, who is winning races and is leading the drivers championship.. Thats a pretty damn good reason to be a cocky little s**t in my opinion. Anyhow - all that cold, hard professionalism is as dull as watching paint dry.

More cockiness, arrogance, and passion please!

Nido

Definitely, particularly in this day and age.

Look at all the modern motorsports champs that have dominated, they all have a cocky/arrogant streak - you have to believe you are the best to be the best.

Schumacher, Rossi, Fogarty, all a perfect example of this.

Petem95

lol! I suppose that is true - and the cockier the driver, the more enjoyable it is watching them get out after planting it in a wall!

Shoemaker was supremely arrogant, but then I cant deny he was a superb driver!

Hoppy

Absolutely untrue.

Given all the hype, he's amazingly modest and very level headed. Many years ago when he accidentally shoved my son off in karting, he apologised. When my lad beat him, both Lewis and his father congratulated us.

That behaviour is almost unheard of in karting and marked Lewis as special right from the start. My son and Lewis have been friends ever since.

Richard.

Wish

iTrader: (2)

Out of the car they are more like politicians.
Never do we see the real person. Hamilton is a prime example

Gav

I think a lot of people miss place arrogance with pure confidence. Lewis is very confident and from what i've seen i dont see him slightly arrogant!

He is just like Tiger Woods, he has an un-doubted belief that he is the best

Sonic'

And he is certainly doing a good job of living up to that belief too

swampster

iTrader: (1)

Reading the stewards verdict which makes reference to the radio communications, it would certainly appear that the statement made by Ron Dennis earlier was basically cobblers, and an attempt to cover up the cracks in the team.

I agree with the stewards that their "explanation" just didn't add up.. especially when you consider Ron Dennis' actions during, and after the incident.. waving at Alonso to get him moving, slinging his headset away, and then frog marching FA's personal trainer to the stewards.

Also from what LH said in an interview before the race, he did say he was asked to slow down by the team and let FA pass earlier in qualifying... which he says he did, but FA just didn't show up to pass, so he made the decision to pit.

Considering all this palaver, the "spy scandal" and the pressures of leading the drivers' championship in his rookie season I think LH is holding up remarkably well and coming across as a total professional!

Hoppy

If you look into any sport in depth, there is always cheating. There is no such thing as 'sporting ethics' and the higher you get the worse it becomes. Winning is everything and everything else is secondary.

Can somebody prove me wrong, at international level, and tell me where no rules are ever bent or broken? I would really like to know.

Formula 1 has been little more than showbusiness for many years where money rules. That's why Hamilton rules - he's good and is worth hundreds of millions to McLaren. But that's what the public wants. Apparently. Winners at any cost.

Show me an honest sport that anybody cares about?

And onother thing, we Brits get all hot under the collar at cheating. Other nationalites - Italaina, Spanish. South America - think that cheating, and getting away with it - is all part of the game. That's why Maradonna's 'hand of God' goal makes him even more of a hero. He cheated the authorites, and won.

Personally, I'm with the cheats who push every single angle to breaking point. I only get upset when my team or driver gets caught out It's how the world turns these days.

Richard.

PS When we aere karting one mulit-millionaire father was notorious for buying every engine that beat his son. He offered me £3,500 for a chain-saw motor that cost a few hundred quid (but tuned to the hilt by John Button, Jenson's dad). Foolishy I refused - it was not that good a motor as I later found out This dad's driver,although not without talent and backed by the family's millions, is currently languishing outide the top ten of GP2.

Sonic'

Isnt that how its always been in F1 ? certainly for the last 6/7 years or so

All the teams (mainly the top ones) push the limits of the rules to the absolute boundaries, and were there are no rules, the teams interpret things their own way until they are caught out, punished or rules get made (the 3 pedals, the traction device etc etc)

what would scooby do

Yup - it's no longer about racing, it's all tactics, cheating, rule interpretation

p.s. Alonso = cheating prima donna

CrisPDuk

I think you're probably right

Or at least, Damon Hill is the only exception I can recall

Gav

Golf is an honest sport at the top level and millions of people care about it

ReallyReallyGoodMeat

Not if the recent drugs revelations are to be believed!

Gav

They arn't. It is no advantage to take any kind of performance enhancing drug in golf and the players know it. Golf is a touch/feel game and in taking drugs they stand to loose that feel

STi wanna Subaru

iTrader: (1)

Err is that why Woods is in the gym bulking up so he can hit it as far as he can? Think you're wrong on this one.

PeteBrant

Well, they weren't so much "revelations" as claims made by Gary Player.

The PGA have already said they woudl welcome drig testing in golf. It is difficult to see why a pro golffer would use doping to gain an advantage - Golf is all about technique and timing, it has bugger all to do with strength and fitness.

If anything, they need to look at equipment advances and place caps on that, rather than doping problems.

PeteBrant

So when Jack Niclaus drove the 18th at St Andres in 1964, he was on steroids?

HItting the ball long and straight is all about the swing. You could hit it 350 yards if you go tthe action right. Are you going to tell me John Daly, who hits the ball regularly over 350 yards is the peak of physical fitness?

David Lock

It's a shame that more and more sports are tainted by cheating or by unsportmanlike behaviour.

But there will always be individuals who stand out - The Gary Lineker factor. You see this in cricket, the batsman who walks, in rugby where, largely, the game is played by tough guys who resist the temptation to lay the opponent out. Even in boxing where they are not all ear biting thugs like Tyson.

Alonso should be kicked out whatever his undoubted skills on the track and F1would be the better for it.

FWIW I think Hamilton has behaved impeccably especially for a youngster just kicking off his career. dl

Matteeboy

Hope this doesn't spoil LH's chances later on - A real shame if our best driver for aeons ends up stuck in some childish insult flinging match.

I don't blame him for a touch of arrogance - you have to have huge levels of self belief to do what he has done so far.

I currently quite fancy roundhouse kicking Alonso back to Spain.

Gav

Think you'll find the reason why Tiger has got bigger is because he has too much elasticity in his muscles. He has the flexabiltiy of a gymnast and he had to tighten up his body by strengthening up his muscles.

Tiger Woods does not hit it as far now as he did when he turned pro. So him hitting the gym bulking up to hit it further is sh!te. He got rid of his 2 iron in favour for a 5 wood because he could'nt hit the 2 iron like he used to!

STi wanna Subaru

iTrader: (1)

I'm saying that in any sport if you can gain a slight advantage over your opponent then it will tempt some people to cheat. In the cases you've mentioned then it may not be as much of an advantage but in a sport where hitting the ball far is an advantage then strength must play a part in that which means some people may look to gain that extra strength by foul means. It's not too hard to see that happening is it?

Nido

Telling Ron Dennis to "go fu*king swivel" is not the best of behaviour, although fair enough it was in the heat of the moment.

Ron has given Hamilton this opportunity, he needs to remember that a little more often I think.

PeteBrant

It's ridiculous to calim there is any significant advantage to be had, It's like saying that there would be an advantage to taking performance enhancing drugs in ten-pin bowling.

Strength does not play a significant part in how far you hit the ball in golf. It's all about timing and technique.

Hitting the ball far also does not necessarily give you an advantage at all , it entirely depends on the course. At the Masters, it's not an advantage at all.

THe number one resons pros, and amateurs for that matter, are hitting the ball further and straighter is changes in equipment.

STi wanna Subaru

iTrader: (1)

How was that flexibility detrimental to his game? Just interested as he seemed to do Ok in his younger days.

All I'm saying is that power is a part of golf and as such it's conceivable that players may look to gain that through a strength increase and that could be with the aid of performance enhancing drugs.

If it's could make no difference then why are they talking about bringing in testing?

Gav

His flexability brought it inconsistencies in his swing. You watch the Masters from 97 when he first won and he hit some seriously wide shots. He was all power with not much control and the way he had to control it was to tighten his muscles.

Being a pro myself i know all about him and golf and i can assure you from a European point of view there is no-one taking drugs. Can't speak for the Yanks but i seriously doubt it, it's not all about power. More fitness. Look at Zach Johnson, winner of this years Masters. He paps it about 260 yds and won round a course where you have to be a "bomber" to win aparently. The players know it's more about feel and how good you are with your wedges and putter

FlightMan

Agree 100% with you. I'm 41, about 2 stone overweight and dont excerice nearly as much as I'd like too, or used to. I am not an athlete. However i can hit drives regularly over 330yards. My playing partner does weights 3 times a weak, has bulked up loads in the last 3 years, and has only gained about 10 yards on his drives. He's still 30 yards behind me.

Golf is about the swing, it has little to do with power. Where strength does help the pro's is hitting shots out of the rough. For THAT, you need strength.

Gav

They are bringing in testing to prove these claims are toss and if a player is caught with something then they will be banned from the sport as a professional

Hoppy

I bet there are a few beta-blockers taken in golf at the very least And psychological warfare aimed at undremining your opponents, most likely through the media who love this kind of controversy.

But back to F1, rumours are already circulating around Alonso's future at McLaren. Briatore wants him back at Renault.

This whole saga brings up an interesting point - is it possible to have two highly talented and competitive drivers in the same team? With overtaking so difficult (we'll leave that debate for another day ) driver cooperation on strategy and pitstops is often the winning factor. That inevitably means a number one driver, and a subservient number two. Like that wimp Rubens

Richard.

STi wanna Subaru

iTrader: (1)

I'll take your word on it but my thoughts are still that if an advantage can be gained through taking drugs no matter how much that may be then somebody will be tempted to do so. That's human nature.