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#260943
I think it was pretty damn cool!

By the way, that's Lewis Hamilton and Tony Stewart driving each other's cars at Watkins Glen. It was fun seeing Lewis driving hard that NASCAR beast--he mentioned that he loved how easy it was to drift the stock car, which makes sense seeing how he loves oversteer.

I was pretty amazed by Stewart--he fearlessly wrung out the MP4-23! It was very cool to watch him drive that car so nicely, so quick, even though there was a part of the track that was not familiar to him. To those who say NASCAR drivers have no talent, I say: LOL.

Pretty cool show. :thumbup:
#260971
I was pretty amazed by Stewart--he fearlessly wrung out the MP4-23! It was very cool to watch him drive that car so nicely, so quick, even though there was a part of the track that was not familiar to him. To those who say NASCAR drivers have no talent, I say: LOL.


I never got farther than that.

Lewis's F1 car isn't entirely alien to Stewart. He's done open-wheel before in the form of Indy. While not the same, it's a lot closer to Lewis's F1 car than the Cup car was to anything Lewis has raced in. Stewart also benefited from having raced around Watkins Glen a lot, even if only on the shorter circuit, which still left him familiar with the bulk of the track, while Lewis has never been there before as far as I'm aware. I've seen other NASCAR drivers running other types of racing besides NASCAR, and it's those other racing experiences that aid in transitioning into Hamilton's F1 car. I'm sure not just any old NASCAR driver could hop into the MP4-23 and tear around the track as fast as either Stewart or Hamilton. I just now checked, and Stewart has open-wheel experience in IRL from 1996 through 2001, including several IRL race wins and podiums, a third-place championship finish and a first-place championship finish. I'd say that helped ease him into driving Lewis's car a bit.
#260986
watkins Glen is where the US GP should be held IF Bernie could "Glamorize" it. The track is awesome and fast with predictable turns that seem to be straightforward which could produce some fantastic racing unlike these Tilke tracks that lack in spirit and flow.
#261490
<EDITED WB> did an admirable job minding his Ps & Qs. One might fancy he's had professional counseling -- either an image consultant ...or maybe a speech writer -- since his melt-down at Monaco. He almost was believable saying he enjoyed floundering about a NASCAR boat.

...To those who say NASCAR drivers have no talent, I say: LOL....

Anyone says they have NO talent is waxing hyperbolic. Shooting craps takes talent, too, but you don't succeed at it -- or at NASCAR -- without more than your share of luck. Even the talentless get to play (at either) much longer if they're well-bankrolled. Just ask Awesome Bill from Dawsonville, who, at 55 years of age, hasn't won a race in eight years (about 2x as long as the typical F1 driver's career) but still has a "part-time" driver's job.

There is no arguing the skill set necessary to be a successful F1 driver is a far rarer commodity. Plus, in NASCAR, driving performance takes a back seat to popularity with sponsors' customers. There've been more than a few drivers who've made an entire NASCAR career based on their surname rather than their driving talent.

In F1, performance is the coin of the realm, not pedigree. With rare exception, even sons of F1 legends generally either demonstrate their mettle in short order or find themselves made redundant.

Whenever I feel the need to spend three hours watching someone drive in left-hand circles, I just go mow the lawn until the urge passes.

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