[simple simon]

MILAN (Reuters) - New Formula One rules for next season will lead to more accidents on wet tracks, Ferrari driver Felipe Massa has said.


Cars will be without traction control and so-called driver aids for 2008, leading Ferrari to test with retired world champion Michael Schumacher, who is used to cars without aids and set the pace in testing in Spain on Tuesday and Wednesday.


"The fact is I didn't have any experience without traction control and I was rubbish," Brazil's Massa was quoted as saying in Friday's Gazzetta dello Sport.


"First the accelerator is like a button. You have to be as soft as possible. But from a safety point of view, these limitations on the use of electronics seem a step backwards. In wet races we will have a lot more accidents."

Massa says F1 rules will cause more accidents | Sports | Motor Sports | Reuters

[Racer Duck]

does this mean the "world's greatest drivers" are no match with the old timers who didn't have the luxuries of all the electronic whiz-bangs in use today? guess they will have to learn how to drive all over again .. or crash a lot!

[simple simon]

Originally Posted by Racer Duck

does this mean the "world's greatest drivers" are no match with the old timers who didn't have the luxuries of all the electronic whiz-bangs in use today? guess they will have to learn how to drive all over again .. or crash a lot!

of course theyre no match

Michael Schumacher vs Alain Prost

Kimi Raikkonen vs Jackie Stewart

Jacques Villeneuve vs Mario Andretti

i give the nod to the old timer on every level

put any pairing in identical top line F1 cars from the 70's and i bet the old timer wins 7 out of 10

[DOF_power]

Originally Posted by simple simon

of course theyre no match

Michael Schumacher vs Alain Prost

Kimi Raikkonen vs Jackie Stewart

Jacques Villeneuve vs Mario Andretti

i give the nod to the old timer on every level

put any pairing in identical top line F1 cars from the 70's and i bet the old timer wins 7 out of 10

Then if you'd go the other way around, putting the old timers in modern cars, the current guys would win 10 out of 10.

The old timers would complain on the current cars about their artificial/numb/lack-of-natural feel and inferior/poor/inexistent mechanical grip (witch is why drivers coming from US open wheeler series and/or europeans coming touring/GT/prototype series are NOT particularily good/failing in F1).
The old timers would also lack the physical condition to drive these things. It took for Senna to introduce fitness and Schumacher to develope it, making the the GP driver a real athlete witch would be all smiles and energy at Monaco when the likes Mansell or Piquet would simply colapse.

All these current drivers started their careers driving karts, those small very tail happy thingies with no trace of TC in the, and they were all the best at doing that, that being part of the reason they get into F1 after many years of driving different TC free racing machines.
There will more mistakes on the slow sections and or rain, but apart from that things won't really change. The big issues will be the lack of the wide slick tires and inferior engine smoothness-flexibility as opposed to the old non TC cars.

Here's Blundell explaing the differences between the older cars (95 when he left and present ones).

YouTube - F1 Simulator to Race Track


Schumacher actually caught Prost at the begining of his carrer.
And he's retired last year.

Villeneuve ?!
He also retired last year.



For hardcore GP machines or racing machines for that matter this is the top of the line:






The 1936/37 Auto Union C type. Only one man in the world could master it. Everything that came after it was (way) easier.

[Bob Tanner]

Originally Posted by DOF_power

Then if you'd go the other way around, putting the old timers in modern cars, the current guys would win 10 out of 10.

The old timers would complain on the current cars about their artificial/numb/lack-of-natural feel and inferior/poor/inexistent mechanical grip (witch is why drivers coming from US open wheeler series and/or europeans coming touring/GT/prototype series are NOT particularily good/failing in F1).
The old timers would also lack the physical condition to drive these things. It took for Senna to introduce fitness and Schumacher to develope it, making the the GP driver a real athlete witch would be all smiles and energy at Monaco when the likes Mansell or Piquet would simply colapse.

All these current drivers started their careers driving karts, those small very tail happy thingies with no trace of TC in the, and they were all the best at doing that, that being part of the reason they get into F1 after many years of driving different TC free racing machines.
There will more mistakes on the slow sections and or rain, but apart from that things won't really change. The big issues will be the lack of the wide slick tires and inferior engine smoothness-flexibility as opposed to the old non TC cars..

You have come up with, IMNSVHO, the definitive reason why it is so futile to compare drivers of different eras.

Originally Posted by DOF_power

For hardcore GP machines or racing machines for that matter this is the top of the line:






The 1936/37 Auto Union C type. Only one man in the world could master it. Everything that came after it was (way) easier.

You, of course, are referring to the late, great Bernd (I think I spelled it right) Rosemeyer? I still think Fangio was the greatest ever, but there I go comparing different eras... <sigh>

[DOF_power]

Yes I do agree about comparing different eras. And yes that was Bernd Rosemeyer.

For GP drivers, IMO, Fangio was the total driver (but not total package due to his lack on the technical side) whereas Schumacher was the total package.