It's a debate that has long divided motorsport fans but one that the UK-based university believes it has found the answer to.
After
racking up five world championship wins between 1951 and 1957, Fangio
is ranked top of the podium by the study, which was based on a driver's
talent rather than their car.
The
Argentine, who graced F1 circuits in the sport's early days, beat off
competition from second-placed Alain Prost and Fernando Alonso in third,
while legendary Brazilian drive Ayrton Senna, who was killed in an
accident during the San Marino Grand Prix in 1994, ranked fifth.
Fangio
won the world championship with four different teams -- a record still
not matched today -- while he also remains the oldest world champion,
having taken the 1957 title aged 46 years and 41 days.
"The
question 'who is the greatest Formula One driver of all time' is a
difficult one to answer, because we don't know the extent to which
drivers do well because of their talent or because they are driving a
good car," Dr Andrew Bell said.
"Our statistical model allows us to find a ranking and assess the relative importance of team and driver effects."
Bell
concedes it was difficult to take into account changes in racing
technology over time, but said the research showed that, as the years
have gone by, the team rather than the driver is a great indicator of
success.
The study found that teams matter around six times more than drivers when it comes to taking the checkered flag in F1.
"It's
obviously a difficult thing to compare, different drivers from
different years -- if you put Fangio in a modern-day car he probably
wouldn't do very well, and similarly the other way round," Bell told
CNN.
"So we looked at how much
these things change over time. The team matter significantly more, the
model says, and that has increased over time.
"As time has gone by, the performance of the car has mattered more and the importance of the driver has mattered less."
Where's Schumacher?
While
Michael Schumacher is the most successful driver with seven world
championships and an unparalleled 91 race wins, people may be surprised
by his ranking in the study, which has been published in the Journal of
Quantitative Analysis in Sports.
The
German only sits in ninth spot once his team's impact is removed, with
his post-retirement performances with Mercedes from 2010 to 2012
dragging him down.
Schumacher, who
also raced for Ferrari, Benetton and Jordan, would actually rank third
in the study if only his pre-retirement career was taken into account.
Three-time
world champion Niki Lauda, meanwhile, fails to even make the
university's top 100 chart, with relatively unknown Christian
Fittipaldi, without a world title to his name, making the top 20.
"Our
statistical model [provides us] with some surprising results," Bell
said. "Had these drivers raced for different teams, their legacies might
have been rather different."
"When
Lauda was performing at his best he was at Ferrari, which is a very
higly-ranked team. When he moved teams, his actual performance dropped,
which came out in the model," Bell added.
"Fittipaldi
came out as one of the best drivers, which at first you think must be a
mistake, but actually the model can bring out performances of drivers
who might not win championships and are in low quality cars.
"The
key thing was he was able to keep his car on the road, when his
teammate wasn't, which helped very much in his favor in this model.
"When you take out the team effect you're seeing how well you compare to your teammate.
"So
if you win lots of championships but your teammate comes second, that
won't count in your favor. Where as if you beat a teammate much more
significantly that suggests it's down to your driving rather than the
car."
While Schumacher's ranking
and Fittipaldi's inclusion ahead of Lauda will be sure to raise
eyebrows, Bell believes that in Fangio the study has found a worthy
winner.
"He dominated the early 50s
and he would firmly have a right to be up there, so I don't see any
reason why he can't be number one," Bell said.
"The
question 'who is the greatest Formula One driver of all time' has
fascinated fans for years and I'm sure will continue to do so."
University of Sheffield study's top five F1 drivers of all time:
1. Juan Manuel Fangio (ARG)
2. Alain Prost (FRA)
3. Fernando Alonso (SPA)
4. Jim Clark (SCO)
5. Ayrton Senna (BRA)
0 comments:
Post a Comment