Underrated drivers past and present

[sennafan24]

Vettel's STR that year was not a bad car, and the team gambled on wet weather, that race Bourdais was not too far behind.

The STR was not a bad car in the same way that this years Force India isn't a bad car.

As for Bourdais, Vettel was a second faster than him in qualifying and he finished a lap down after stalling on the grid.

I watched the 2008 season review recently.

Bourdais is a bit underrated and actually performed better against Vettel than the stats show. The STR towards the end of the year was a very good car, I want to say around 3rd or 4th best behind Ferrari and McLaren.

Vettel performed when it mattered in Monza, the one weekend where he had the best car (or strategy if you like) he ran with it like a driver beyond his years. Bourdais was made to look a lot worse than he actually was due to Vettel's professional performance.

I am no Vettel fan, but it would be hard for me to see a rookie of the 2013 class complete such a drive even if they did have the best car/strategy for a weekend.

[raymondu999]

I think that's a fair assesment, though I'd go for 4th quickest rather than 3rd - there was the BMW in P3 IMO.

About Monza, let's not forget Vettel had a dry setup and Bourdais a wet one. Even the speedtraps confirm it!

[sennafan24]

I think that's a fair assesment, though I'd go for 4th quickest rather than 3rd - there was the BMW in P3 IMO.

I will not dispute that, Toyota was in the mix as well. Vettel by the end of the year was probably the difference maker in comparison to the Toyota drivers.