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Thing is he can be fast, real fast. But to be that fast he really drive just over his own ability making it more luck then actual skill. His main quality seems to be lack of self preservation, not sure that's who I'd want on the same track as me.
Maldonado can definitely race a dam car. But just the same he often "reads" gaps or a space that isnt really present. Then thats how he creates these accidents. Also it seems that he likes to be a one of those drivers that kind of force a hard situation hoping the other driver will move aside and just concede the racing line in fear of messing up. But often they dont and he doesnt and so they crash..... Crashtor Maldonado..... I just wonder for how long can he continue to pay to be in Formula 1 with such a bad reputation.
Most of the time when commentators show respect because he did an overtake without crashing it's because the other drivers were attentive and avoided the trouble.
I really think that Maldonado is not good enough for F1. Having a decent pace when everything works well isn't good enough because he is always driving on his own limit and as soon as the car gets on it's limits he crashes.
No driver who has won a race can ever be considered for "worst driver ever", its not like he even lucked into that win or benefitted from others unreliabilty. He won it fair and square.
Most eratic driver ever... maybe. Slowest learning driver ever.... perhaps.
If he could calm it down, learn from his mistakes and use his speed well he would be a good driver.
"A pretentious quote taken out of context to make me look deep" - Some old racing driver
I think this topic proves nicely in what way it's just popular to be jumping on the bandwagon of criticising Maldonado.
Unfortunately, racing in the midfield (or back of the grid) presents a very different challenge, to being in a front running car. Statistically, racing at the front means less risk of coliding with anyone and more of a clean race. Racing further back, the risk increases as you are more in traffic and you have a lot of stuff going on around you. Lewis Hamilton, who is often considered as being one of the best current drivers, has found himself in the midfield too. 2011 was a good example of this, when he often found himself entangled in on-track collisions, namely with Massa and others. The thing is though; we know how well he is in wheel-to-wheel racing from all the other years, so perhaps it's easier to look from a bigger picture on why some of those incidents even happened. Maldonado... is not that fortunate. He's been firmly in the midfield ever since he joined F1 and for a driver in one of those teams, it's a lot harder to make a meaninful impact. I genuinly believe he is really quick on a good day, but he certainly also is eratic and at times perhaps too agressive, when it would be better to remain calm and focused with the long-game in mind.
It's all part of the package. To be a good F1 driver, you not only need to be fast, you also need to be calculated, know when to push, when to be agressive and when not to. Unfortunately, for a driver at the front, the required skillset is very different to one further behind. Take Vettel from 2010 to 2013. How often was he tested during those years in wheel-to-wheel racing? Hardly. And when he did find himself in the midfield (i.e. because he started out of position), he still found himself in a much quicker car relative to the cars around him. That has a huge impact on how he is treated; As a driver, you wouldn't waste your time trying to defend against a much quicker car because you know you are simply fighting the inevitable. However, a midfield car vs. a midfield car is different, as those two are often in direct competition to another, so no space is granted.
I'd say this clouds our judgment in determing how could Maldonado is or could be. If he were in a front-running car, I'm sure he would be a very formidable competitor, like on that 2012 spanish grandprix when he withstood the pressure of Fernando behind him and to his first grand prix win.
Not for nothing, Rosberg's Championship is the only thing that lends credibility to Hamilton's recent success. Otherwise, he'd just be the guy who's had the best car. — bhall II #Team44 supporter
Dad's big bucks (money) trumps luck in the 'Big Show', just like for Karel Abraham in Moto GP..
"Well, we knocked the bastard off!"
Ed Hilary on being 1st to top Mt Everest,
(& 1st to do a surface traverse across Antarctica,
in good Kiwi style - riding a Massey Ferguson farm
tractor - with a few extemporised mod's to hack the task).
xDama wrote: In China for example, he overshot the pitlane entry 1x during FP and 1x during the race. You don't make those mistakes, after 12 years of single seater experience, if you're a good driver.
ahem - Hamilton 07? Admittedly his team left him out until his tyres were worn down to the carcass.
Yeah, it was in 2008 for starters... Only his 2nd season of F1 and 7th in single seaters, and it was super stressful race. Pastor is driving his 12th season in single seaters by now.
My point is: Pastor constantly makes the most stupid and unnecessary mistakes and even after 12 years of single seater racing, he's still able to f*ck things up. It takes a rare kind of driver to do that.
PlatinumZealot wrote:
SilverArrow10 wrote:Worst driver to win a race possibly.
I actually rather have Crashtor in my car than Kova or Heidfeld to be honest.
:')
Heidfeld always had good pace and a superb reliability. I think he still holds the record of most consecutive race finishes (41). I think Pastor is the opposite of that. He will probably earn the record of a driver who has lost the most points ever, due to his own driving.
Actually, this would really show how bad he is imo. There are so many races where Pastor had a perfect opportunity to score points, but completely f*cked it up.
"I race to win, and if you no longer go for a gap that exists, you're no longer a racing driver." - Ayrton Senna
DAMNINice wrote:Most of the time when commentators show respect because he did an overtake without crashing it's because the other drivers were attentive and avoided the trouble.
I really think that Maldonado is not good enough for F1. Having a decent pace when everything works well isn't good enough because he is always driving on his own limit and as soon as the car gets on it's limits he crashes.
not good enough for F1? only good enogh to win clean and fair against ALO after he lost the start in Spain 2012... sure.
and all because HAM was underfueled in qualy, would could would
Finishing races is important, but racing is more important.
Remember when Grosjean used to drive up the arse of everyone at the start of races? He at least grew out of his 'issues'. Maldonado is fast, but I think he has a bit too much 'fight' in him. He is exciting to watch.
