- 10 Apr 14, 15:10#398728
2014 Monster 26x Bookie Mugger
2015, 2016 WDC: LH44
What is most intriguing about the Merc pair is that all Lewis supporters should instantly be rooting for Nico to push Lewis as hard as possible, even to the point of proving himself the faster driver. This seemingly counter intuitive stance will be the confirmation of Lewis' greatness in posterity
Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton. Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna. The former pairing doesn’t exactly evoke the same kind of spine-tingling, era-defining nostalgia the latter creates with the mere mention of those two famous names. But, on the evidence of the first three races, in years to come it has the potential to come close to matching it.
There is little point denying that despite his spirituality, Hamilton, or no other driver for that matter, is likely to come close to matching Senna’s mysticism, which was a unique element of his appeal. You are unlikely to see Hamilton describing a lap in the same terms his Brazilian hero used for his pole run at Monaco in 1988. Likewise, while there are similarities in their demeanour, and their methodical, calculating mentality, Rosberg is not yet as professorial as Prost and is nowhere near as political.
But Senna and Prost only developed fully as personalities, and as drivers, after the few years of intense, ferocious competition with each other; the kind of inter-team rivalry Rosberg and Hamilton have not so far shared. Senna and Prost made each other what they were, and can almost not be imagined without each other. If the Mercedes drivers continue to fight at the front this season and next – as they did in Bahrain – it will not be too long before the same is true of them.
Although it is often overplayed, the contrast of styles and demeanours mirrors Prost-Senna. Hamilton and Rosberg are open enough to admit that. And without other teams, on present form, to steal their limelight, the relentless focus and spotlight will be on the pair throughout the season.
It has been suggested to me that the Rosberg-Hamilton cannot fully captivate the sport because Mercedes are in a league of their own. If fans really believe that one all-conquering team in Formula One precludes an exciting season, then there are several natural ripostes. 1988? 1989? Were these dull seasons? McLaren won 15 out of 16 races in 1988 – a record which stands to this day – and were nearly as dominant a year later. But these are widely recognised to be two of the finest years in the sport’s lengthy history, almost solely because of the depth of rivalry and competition between Prost and Senna.
Without intentionally bringing hateful tweets, comments and emails upon myself, if a follower of Formula One declines to recognise that 1988 and 1989 were two phenomenal seasons, then they might want to consider whether they really are a ‘fan’ after all.
The reason some of the last few years have been on the dull side is not solely because Red Bull were supreme, it is partly because of the disparity in performance between Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber.
We can harp on about ‘the good ol’ days’ as much as we like - although in reality, the gap between teams has generally shortened rather than elongated in recent days - but 2014 has all the ingredients for a hugely memorable rivalry. After all, there are so many factors and subplots at play which make the Rosberg-Hamilton dynamic so intriguing.
They’re friends. They’ve raced against each other since they were 15. They can quickly regale anyone with stories of the wrestling matches or the pizza-eating contests of their youth.
How that relationship holds up under immense strain and stress is difficult to predict, but if the championship remains close throughout 2014’s 19 rounds, it is impossible not to imagine - possibly quite public - friction. Formula One loves a good soap opera, after all.
There is also the size of their respective trophy cabinets. Even though Hamilton keeps his in his father’s loft or garage, he has more wins and the trophy that matters over Rosberg: the world championship, of course.
That experience of what it takes to get over the line will be invaluable, but if the season does become more competitive, will it influence Mercedes' choice of who to back if it gets to that?
So far, and to their enormous credit, Mercedes have eschewed team orders. The softly spoken Paddy Lowe is now the man giving out the crucial radio messages, and his drivers just about fulfilled his request to bring the cars home with 10 laps to go.
Not every race will be like Bahrain, but there may come a point when such an admirably free policy becomes untenable, particularly if they do make contact in a race. Unless of course their championship lead is so enormous it does not even matter if they take each other out.
Regardless of whether team orders are imposed, there’s something common to all racing drivers, and especially the best ones: they hate to lose. Rosberg was gracious in defeat in Bahrain, but he was clearly deeply wounded and frustrated. From the early indications, they will probably share the winning and the losing, and as the championship reaches its critical point managing those losses will become increasingly difficult.
At the moment, they are both good spirited enough to share an almost rugby tackle embrace after the race, and they both speak about how they share data, studying one another’s performances to garner crucial information.
But will all that last? History suggests that it will struggle to. And that will be the making of a rivalry of epic proportions.
2014 Monster 26x Bookie Mugger
2015, 2016 WDC: LH44
