The debate about who is the greatest driver in Formula 1 history is timeless and always open to discussion. Now experts from the British outlet ‘The Telegraph’ have decided to put an end to the conversation. In an article by journalist Luke Slater, they analyzed the data, and their conclusion is that Juan Manuel Fangio is the greatest driver in history.
What has surprised a large portion of the Formula 1 community is something else: Fernando Alonso doesn’t even appear in the top ten. In fact, the Spanish driver sits in fifteenth place historically, and Slater concedes that “in another world Alonso would have won four world titles and more than 60 races”.
Alonso is fifteenth despite experts admitting that “no one has been so consistently fast”
The Argentine Juan Manuel Fangio is the greatest driver in the history of Formula 1. This is what the experts at ‘The Telegraph’ say, who have conducted a study to settle the eternal debate about the best driver who never existed. For them, Fangio, who won five Formula 1 world championships, “is unbeatable when proportional figures are taken into account”.
Behind him, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton chase in second and third place respectively. Both have seven world titles and the Englishman has won 104 races, compared to 91 for Schumacher. However, Slater believes that “Schumacher benefited greatly from a car that was difficult to drive, while Hamilton had a winning car from the moment he arrived“.
What has surprised many fans, especially in Spain, is Alonso’s delayed ranking. The Asturian appears fifteenth, despite the Telegraph expert recognizing that “no one has been as consistently fast as him”, alluding to the fact that Alonso is the driver with the most races in Formula 1 and has not had a single dip.
Slater de hecho añade que “en otro mundo Alonso tendría cuatro mundiales y más de 60 Grandes Premios ganados”, pero en el mundo que nos ha tocado vivir coloca a Alonso decimoquinto. Lo más llamativo es que está por detrás de pilotos con mucho menos palmarés que él, como el inglés Stirling Moss, que ni siquiera llegó a ganar un mundial pero sale decimocuarto.
También otro inglés con menos palmarés que Alonso, Nigel Mansell, aparece por delante de él con su único mundial ganado en 1992. Una tendencia que nos invita a pensar que el pasaporte de los pilotos ha influido un poco en las elecciones de ‘The Telegraph’. De hecho, a Jim Clark, escocés, lo suben hasta la cuarta posición aún con peor palmarés que Alonso.
Además de Alonso y Hamilton, el otro piloto de la actual parrilla que aparece en la lista es Max Verstappen. El tetracampeón del mundo está en la séptima posición, por detrás también de Ayrton Senna y Alain Prost, quinto y sexto respectivamente. Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda y Alberto Ascari completan un controvertido top diez.
Imágenes | Aston Martin
