I'm not misrepresenting what people post or say, I don't even have access to their accounts. They post or say what they choose without any influence from me.
Clearly Autosport's statistics are unmitigated garbage, but I remain open to the possibility that in equal equipment Schumi might have been better or worse than Vettel, Alonso etc.
Schumacher in his prime was almost perfect. Even Senna struggled to beat a young Schumacher. Current Schumacher is not even 50% of his former self.
Who wrote this sea-man? I know it's from Autosport but some of their journalists come across quite biased in my opinion sometimes. Mark Hughes seems a Hamilton and Ferrari fan, Edd Straw likes Vettel etc. That's the way the come across to me anyway. Just interested to know which one produced this. Presumably neither of the two I mentioned.
I shall pretend this article never existed. I will say this: for me, Schumacher in his peak is the greatest of all time, and I only think one of the WDC winners on the grid - you can probably guess who - is likely to challenge that status any time soon.
No doubt you will also pretend this reply doesn't exist. Schumacher was good; but greatest of all time? - Not a chance. Not a chance in hell… (Apologies to EMSC, who I have greater respect for)
Considering the arguments EMSC and I have had... Schumacher made F1 boring with his dominance. Beat out Hakkinen, Raikkonen, and Coulthard and ran Alonso very close. Don't agree with his methods (1994 title still goes with a pinch of salt) but you can't argue they weren't successful. You can't really compare Fangio and Schumacher's records - they were racing at different times - so it comes down to personal preference. Who else do you want to bring up... Senna, Prost? Going back even earlier? Now we're getting into territory I can't really comment on. They get props for winning for different teams and being successful at each. Senna will never quite be the greatest for the simple reason that he could not achieve all that he had the potential to do. Prost often gets overlooked for Senna I feel, definitely in my top 10 if not my top 5.
I'm sorry tomtom but he is just a prost compared to this senna-esque driver please log in to view this image
Without wishing to correct the grammar of those involved, surely there is only one "current" world champion? Unless the FIA have changed the rules slightly, and i didn't notice.
Nice reply Tom. You're quite right that it is difficult to compare drivers of different eras. This is the thing about 'greatest' and definitions thereof. However, 'greatness' in the truest sense of the word extends well beyond achievements (although of course it must also include them). Schumacher, despite his considerable achievements, has several serious flaws which keep him some distance from the very top. In my opinion, his achievements (however they came about) are sufficient compensation to place him close to the top 10, but probably still outside it. Now, having genuinely laughed at your humour Reaper, I must strongly disagree with the dismissive reference to Prost. He is arguably as "great" as Senna (A version); and for those who prefer statistics (which often over-impresses the Schumacher crowd), it is a logical progression that Prost is "greater" than Senna. I'd disagree! For a start, Prost is still living, but he's just the thin end of the wedge… I'd still disagree! In my opinion, there are better drivers on the current grid than he ever was. Also, please note that I use the plural "drivers"!- - - o0o - - - I repeat: for me, greatness requires several attributes in addition to achievement. Ultimately, it is a matter of opinion of course; but having spent a life-time involved with the sport, this is mine. For comparison, a likeness can be drawn with footballers. Those such as Pelé, Messi, Charlton R, Matthews, Duncan Edwards (tragically killed in his prime), Jairzhiño, Meazza (football's Nuvolari), Beckenbaur to an extent, and a few others; have something Schumacher has never - and will never - have. But in terms of footballers, perhaps there is a parallel. - Schumacher approaches a Maradona type or the modern day Torres (as opposed to the truly great Brazilian: Carlos Alberto Torres). And he is still somewhere below a Zidane, who may have briefly held top spot with the spherical ball…
Simply put guys, you cannot compare Schumacher to Senna, unless you are an imbecile. You cannot compare Schumacher to the top five drivers in their teams today, until Schumacher gets a race winning car. We just have to wait.
Well it really isn't is it, unless Michael has a vehicle capable of competing against the top three teams, how can we judge him. Yes we can against Rosberg, but what will that show us? That he was beaten after a three year long break away from the sport. From 2011 has improved upon his points deficit of around 100 points by 10x. If the W03 is good this year, we can start making comparisons against other drivers, just not yet though.
