gums

Very few of us here have any clue what the heck that even means.

StoogeMoe

I come from the Mario and Michael Andretti school of racing. You go flat out every race no matter what. You either win or you break and finish last. Remember, I think it was Indy 1987 when Mario had a two lap lead on the field and he kept his foot in it all the way. His engine broke with like 15 laps to go, but I respect him setting fast lap after fast lap. That's the way to go out! Knowing that you gave it your all the whole time.

That's another reason I like Vettel. He knows his engine situation but he says he's going for it no matter what. If his engine breaks and he has to take a 10 grid position penalty, then so be it. He'll know he gave it his all.

It's also like a football game where a team plays prevent at the end. And we know how that usually ends. Good luck Button!

gums

Actually, Stooge, although Mario will always be my hero, it was during that Indy race that he was so far ahead that he was actually stroking it. The Chevrolet engineers tried to convince him that the reason for the valve train failure was a harmonic vibration that was set up because he was not running the engine at full song and rather breathing it to preserve the win.

ltc

Matt Kenseth won the 2003 NA$CAR Winston Cup championship (2003 being the last year for the Winston Cup, it would be renamed the Nextel/Sprint Cup the following year) with only have won a single race IIRC, Las Vegas.
He won the championship, even though several competitors (Newman and Busch) won MANY more races than he did.
http://www.nascar.com/races/wc/2003/..._official.html
So, NA$CAR abandoned its 30+ year old formula for calculating a champion and invented the 'Chase' format.
Many don't consider a driver who only won a single race a champion, even if mathematically consistency is rewarded more than performance.

Many will likely consider Button not deserving of the 2009 F1 WDC due to the diffuser issue at the beginning of the season and how long it took for the issue to be "clarified and resolved".

It is interesting to note that Bernie is an advocate for the 'Gold Medal' points system for determining the F1 WDC....whoever wins the most races is declared the champion, in the event of a tie for # of races won, then 2nd place finishes (and if necessary 3rd place finishes) will determine the WDC.

Larry Herman

Not to get too far off-topic but Mario Andretti could break an anvil with a rubber hammer. It is a wonder that the fragile Lotus 79 held together long enough for him to win a championship.

multi21

I'm from the Michael Schumacher school of racing where you win at the slowest pace possible to preserve your equipment. Kimi had a reputation of breaking his equipment all the time and could have cost him a WDC or 2 while at McLaren. I think his race engineer Chris Dyer gave Kimi the 'ol Schumacher speech about winning at the slowest pace possible and that turned into a WDC and the loss of the "Kimi is hard on equipment" stigma.

gums

As opposed to the Gilles Villenueve school in which the car is wrung out and drained of every ounce of vitality since there's plenty of time to restore it for the next race in which maybe we'll do better than
14th anyway

Jim Child

Under that system Button would still be champion and would have clinched two races ago.

500

No, let's give it to the guy who won the most races instead!!! Err... wait a minute...

If JB had spread six wins out over the course of season, we probably wouldn't be having this poll, or, if the Brawn had instead gained competitiveness and Button won the last six races of the season, we'd be cheering the come-from-behind run.

As was said before, there have been World Champions that were not necessarily the "best" driver of that year (if you can even define that). Plus, I wouldn't slag Button that much over his recent performances. His pass of Kubica in Japan was quite a move. He has made a lot of good passes this year, which otherwise has been a season bereft of good passing due to the loss of grip those huge front wings seem to suffer when running close behind another car...

gums

Was Rindt deserving?

Larry Herman

Yeah, you are right but it isn't happening that way and so that it why there is some controversey. Besides, I think that as a culture, we (Americans) tend to have greater appreciation for those who have to gather themselves (the underdog) and then make a strong run at the end to grab victory than those who jump out in front and then appear to coast to the win.

Land Jet

Button won his races against handicapped competitors. Remember the rear air defuser debacle? After everyone got on the same page, Button dropped to his normal middle of the pack finishes. I think there was one second half win for him. I do not consider him to be a great driver, mediocre is more apt. With superior equipment he can win, whereas other drivers{Vettel, Alonso, Kimi come to mind} seem to be able to get more out of so-so cars and win. Personally I hope he crashes out both races, but if he should win the driver championship, I will be happy for his father who has been by his side since Jenson's teen karting years.

paradisenb

This is correct but that is not how it is ending. He had vastly superior equipment at the begining of the year and ran away from everyone. Now he is on cruise control.

A worthy champion does not set back and coast. It is not in their nature.

(Think Vettle in the last race or Dirk Werner in Rolex.) JB needs a win or a podium in both races to earn any excitement from me at him being WDC.

I still won't dismiss his title as nothing but.... YAWN.

Vettle hard on his equipment in the last race? Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!
Those two were in perfect harmony. In The Zone. He could feel that machine willfully and without protest conspiring with him to glide around that track.

OMG that is such a great and rare feeling.

the flyin' scotsman

If Button does win the WDC I hope he does well in the last races.

Vettel will try hard but may run into engine issues and have to agree with Pete;
brawn will be fully behind JB

race911

If Mario is going to be the most common point of conversation here, he clued me in to a little something on the Lotus 79 a couple of weeks ago. (We were at his winery for a release day.) The rear brakes (at least the inner half of the caliper) were cast as part of the transaxle housing. So he won more than one of those races with only front brakes. Seemed he had more than one spirited discussion with Chapman over this.

Back to if Button is deserving. In my time, I've followed everyone from Lauda to Hamilton winning the championship. Was Lauda's Ferrari the dominate car in 75? Hunt's McLaren in '76? Lauda's Ferrari in '77? Flash forward to Piquet in Bernie's Brabham with turbo BMW. Etc etc etc. Did Senna have a dog car in which he won despite his equipment? Prost? Lauda resurrected in the TAG McLaren? Etc etc etc all the way to Schumacher's rides this decade.