The McLaren Mercedes in 2009 – care to fans of Lewis Hamilton
The 2009 season of Formula 1 is almost upon us and the teams involved are above the test. Many prognosticators are looking to McLaren as the dominant team for the next season, but fans of Lewis Hamilton to be cautious.
The station in 2008 evicted be the charm for Lewis Hamilton. A massive talented driver, saw its share of turmoil in the two stations which has been in F1. There were some legitimate questions about his ability to handle the pressure when dropped off at the end of the 2007 season and nearly did so again in 2008. That being said, the fact he is now a Champion must remove all the pressure and we should see a more constant and sincere, a more consistent Hamilton’s first race with hard. Many suggested that right that means more championships are on the way, perhaps in Schumacher and the numbers can be achieved. Just a fly in the ointment.
The design and development of the Formula 1 car is a tricky prospect. If you get the error of the initial design of the car, you may be in for a very long season. One need only look at the disaster that is known as the Honda team for the past years. Three years ago the team was very competitive and Jenson Button get even their first victory, though it was in the rain. The project team lacked badly in the car next year and the team could never recover. If you think that the decision to withdraw from Formula 1, Honda was due not only to economic issues, but also the fact that the cars drove around the back of the block and not get anything but the bad publicity.
The fly in the ointment for a dominant operation for Lewis Hamilton is McLaren Mercedes. You might be surprised by that statement, but a historical review of the team is something of interest. When the regulations changed in F1 and had a major redesign of the car, McLaren did well with the new project. The early 2000s saw a car design and development which was a disaster. The car is blindingly fast for five to 10 lap and then drop a wing or the engine spectacular explosion. In other years, the car simply would not have the pace of a Ferrari or [gasp] a Renault.
So does this mean McLaren is in for a rough year? Of course not. The team is continually bringing in new blood and new ideas are uniting. The car can be dominant in 2009, but could not. The point is nobody really knows until the cars hit the track and the first lap of the first race start. At this point we know who is fast and who is the problem, but not before then. A great driver with a bad car is gong to have bad results, so don ‘t get too taken with the idea of a League of Hamilton in 2009 until you see the car run.