25 Greatest Ever drivers

[phil1993]

For the next issue (#7) of the magazine, we will feature a list of the 25 greatest ever drivers. The scoring system will be 25 to 1 from best to 25th best and you can choose from whoever in the history of F1. Although any mentions of drivers with no points will not be approved. Please PM me your list

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25

[JoostLamers]

It took a while, but here it is

1. Ayrton Senna
2. Michael Schumacher
3. Juan Manuel Fangio
4. Jim Clark
5. Alain Prost
6. Sir Jackie Stewart
7. Sir Stirling Moss
8. Gilles Villeneuve
9. Fernando Alonso
10. Mika Hakkinen
11. Nigel Mansell
12. Lewis Hamilton
13. Graham Hill
14. Niki Lauda
15. Nelson Piquet
16. James Hunt
17. Alberto Ascari
18. Sir Jack Brabham
19. Emerson Fittipaldi
20. Kimi Raikkonen
21. Alan Jones
22. Keke Rosberg
23. Jacques Villeneuve
24. Mario Andretti
25. Sebastian Vettel

[Eric_Cartman]

Jaques Villeneuve better than Vettel? no way! I would even say 3 or 4 drivers in the current field that you didn't put to your list like Kubica, Button or Nico Rosberg are better than Villeneuve. He was World Champion in a car, that was nearly 1 second faster than any other car. And after his World title he was just average.

Apart from that it's a good list

[JoostLamers]

Jaques Villeneuve better than Vettel? no way! I would even say 3 or 4 drivers in the current field that you didn't put to your list like Kubica, Button or Nico Rosberg are better than Villeneuve. He was World Champion in a car, that was nearly 1 second faster than any other car. And after his World title he was just average.

Apart from that it's a good list

I compare Vettel's first 3 years in F1 to Villeneuve's first 3 years in F1, on those results and performances I vote Villeneuve better than Vettel. Plus the RB6 was also nearly 1 second faster than the rest, and he didn't lead the World Championship, only after the last race. Plus I think Villeneuve is a better overtaker. But Vettel has got the talent to move into the top 10 the coming years, as does Lewis Hamilton

[blizzard]

Uff, very very hard to do.
I think there is a general problem of comparing different eras of F1 due to the completely different cars, rules and level of competition. I think that Fangio for example wouldn't dominate today like he did in the 50's. The level of competition isso high these days that the margins between the drivers have deteriorated rapidely.

Personally I admire Senna, M. Schumacher and Jim Clark the most. I think they are (probably) also the best drivers of all time.
The order? I don't know, if personality counts aswell then Senna is the greatest without a doubt (although Jim Clark was a decent bloke aswell it seems).

I don't think I know enough about each driver to make a full 25 list, but I fancy to have a go at a top 10 list. At one point the BBC should make a computer simulation where all of the greats race each other to determine who the best was (like HBO did with M. Ali and Rocky Marciano), that would be cool and finally give the fans some clarity. I would bet 20 euros on Jim Clark to win it, just a feeling. I think he was the most naturally talented driver of all time, sometimes winning effortlessly it seemed. Senna had the biggest heart and an unmatched ability of nailing a perfect qualifying lap. He also had that special aura of invincibility around him and of course his ambition was unseen before. Probably only Michael Schmacher could match Senna in terms of ambition (although Lewis Hamilton comes very close in that department). Schumacher was the best prepared driver ever and probably the one who sacrificed the most of his private life to excell in formula one. He wasn't the quickest ever, he wasn't the smartest ever (This one probably goes to either Prost or Lauda) and he wasn't the most naturally talented ever, but his work ethic and unlimited ambition made him one of the 3 best ever.
It's tough to rate guys like Gilles Villeneuve or Ronnie Peterson who died in their prime. I think both could and would eventually been champions once or twice. Villeneuve would probably be in my tp 3 'most talented driver of all time'. What he didn't have was the intelligence of Prost, Lauda or Senna and he wasn't a perfectionist like Schumacher.

Finally, to compose an excat top 25 list is simply impossible in my oppinion. There are always personal oppinions involved, whether it's our own oppinion or the journalist' oppinion who made the documentary we've watched about those great men. As I mentioned earlier a computer simulation would probably be the best and only way to really compare them and rate them.

1. Ayrton Senna da Silva (BRA)
2. James 'Jim' Clark (SCO)
3. Michael Schumacher (GER)
4. Juan Manuel Fangio (ARG)
5. Sir John Young 'Jackie' Stewart (SCO)
6. Alain Prost (FRA)
7. Andreas Nikolaus 'Niki' Lauda (AUT)
8. Sir John Arthur 'Jack' Brabham (AUS)
9. Fernando Alonso (ESP) - Lewis Hamilton might be 9th one day, depending on how well McLaren develop their cars in the nex 6-10 years.
10. Alberto Ascari (ITA)

THen there are people like Nelson Piquet senior, Gilles Villeneuve, Jochen Rindt, Emerson Fittipaldi, Mika HÄkkinen, Graham Hill, John Surtees etc. I just don't know enough of them to rate them (with the exception of Häkkinen and Villeneuve).

[zoefrances]

1kimi raikkonen
2ayrton senna
3mika hakkinen
4seb vettle
5keke rosberg
6nigel mansell
7damon hill
8 gerhard berger
9jaques villenueve
10nico rosberg
11robert kubica
12nick heidfeld
13 rubens barrichello
14 jenson button
15 lewis hamilton
16 james hunt
17 giles villenueve
18 fangio
19 jackie stewart
20 john surtese
21 david coulthard
22 jean alesi
23 moss
24 stefan johansson
25 prost

[Essi]

For me it´s:

1. Kimi Räikkönen
2. Michael Schumacher
3. Ayrton Senna
4. Mika Häkkinen
5. Juan Manuel Fangio
6. Alain Prost
7. Niki Lauda
8. Emerson Fittipaldi
9. Lewis Hamilton
10. Jackie Stewart
11. Jim Clark
12. James Hunt
13. Nigel Mansell
14. Sebastian Vettel
15. Nelson Piquet
16. Jack Brabham
17. Fernando Alonso
18. Alberto Ascari
19. Graham Hill
20. Stirling Moss
21. Gilles Villeneuve
22. Alan Jones
23. Graham Hill
24. Keke Rosberg
25. Damon Hill

[KimiFanAhmad]

1. Kimi Raikkonen
2. Ayrton Senna
3. Mika Hakkinen
4. Michael Schumacher
5. Juan Pablo Montoya
6. Jenson Button
7. Damon Hill
8. Nigel Mansell
9. Alain Prost
10. Fernando Alonso

I saw this drivers.

[piton86]

1. Michael Schumacher
2. Ayrton Senna
3. Alain Prost
4. Jim Clark
5. Jacques Villenueve
6. Sir Jackie Stewart
7. Sir Stirling Moss
8. Gilles Villeneuve
9. Fernando Alonso
10. Mika Hakkinen
11. Nigel Mansell
12. Lewis Hamilton
13. Graham Hill
14. Niki Lauda
15. Nelson Piquet
16. James Hunt
17. Alberto Ascari
18. Sir Jack Brabham
19. Emerson Fittipaldi
20. Kimi Raikkonen
21. Alan Jones
22. Keke Rosberg
23. Juan Manuel Fangio
24. Mario Andretti
25. Sebastian Vettel

[collector]

1. Ayrton Senna
2. Michael Schumacher
3. Nelson Piquet
4. ....

[Mattyboy]

1. Juan Manuel Fangio
2. Michael Schumacher
3. Ayrton Senna
4. Alain Prost
5. Stirling Moss
6. Jim Clark
7. Alberto Ascari
8. Nelson Piquet
9. Jack Brabham
10. Nigel Mansell
11. Fernando Alonso
12. Sebastian Vettel
13. Jackie Stewart
14. Lewis Hamilton
15. Jenson Button
16. Emerson Fittipaldi
17. Niki Lauda
18. Kimi Raikkonen
19. Mika Hakkinen
20. Graham Hill
21. Jean Alesi
22. Gerhard Berger
23. Rubens Barrichello
24. David Coulthard
25. Gilles Villeneuve