F1: Rising drivers and backmarkers

“We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations.” – Charles R. Swindoll

Mark Webber has recently admitted that his decision to turn down an offer to join Renault from the 2005 season wasn’t his best decision, as the team went on a roll to win the constructors and drivers championship while Webber struggled to score points at the ailing Williams team.

It’s always a lesson for young drivers to identify opportunities. Webber was then at his best, and together with Renault, he could have won the drivers championship or would have given a tough challenge to Fernando Alonso. It’s not required that a Ferrari or probably Red Bull now will continue to dominate as the new regulations kick in for the 2014 season. There could be a darkhorse somewhere, and that’s when the drivers shouldn’t be afraid to take a brave decision, if an opportunity comes their way. Webber could have gone with the heritage that the Williams team possess over the sport, but if he made a gamble to switch to the darkhorse, he could have been a champion.

Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future – John F. Kennedy

It’s unfortunate that the present world doesn’t let the talented drivers to survive, the Formula 1 is ruled by ‘pay drivers’. Some of the top teams like Ferrari suggest that the decision to field three cars per team should come sooner than later as it can boost the talent and would mix up the field. Imagine if another driver was added to the mix in the Red Bull camp, Would Vettel be able to defend his title against Hamilton, Alonso and Kimi in the same chassis? We now know that the decision to go with Daniel Ricciardo over Kimi Raikkonen was over age than talent or anything else, so if there was a possibility of fielding three cars per team, we could have seen a fair competition to Vettel, as we are yet to see if Ricciardo can adapt to the big team.

Competition has increased compared to yesteryears, and so was the necessity for ‘pay drivers’. Bianchi and Bottas seem to possess plenty of talent, and they should not be in Formula 1 to add to the numbers or to fill the grid. Maybe, they should learn from drivers like Kobayashi, Webber and Heidfeld to pursue a new challenge somewhere and come back into Formula 1 at a time when the top team needs them. There’s no point for them to continue yet another season at the bottom half of the table.

On the other hand, Williams and Marussia could use in more funds from a pay driver. It would be a win win situation for one and all. As sticking to the same challenge at the bottom of the field would result in the formation of yet another Hulkenberg where the driver is filled with talent but has nothing to improvise, and eventually fresh drivers could fill their spots, and these talents could be forgotten in our short memory span, as from the case of Sutil, most of the ratings have been downgraded from the tag of ‘Future Champion’ to a ‘Good Driver’, and we do not even know if Sutil was capable of doing something extraordinary.