Sergio Perez. Mexico's greatest driver since Pedro Rodriguez?

[Jacques Rabbit]

The good thing about comparing drivers to Senna is that if the driver doesn't succeed, you can just go back and say you meant Bruno.

[Peralta]

Originally Posted by ghinzani

Is Perez the fella who did that amazing comeback drive in BF3 a few years back? If so then he has got something special for sure.

Yeah that's him. Beating the likes of Daniel Ricciardo. He did it twice! It was featured in Autosport in an article about best comebacks in Formula 3.

[chunterer]

Originally Posted by Jacques Rabbit

The good thing about comparing drivers to Senna is that if the driver doesn't succeed, you can just go back and say you meant Bruno.

Bit unfair that, he's a fair bit better than Bruno surely??

[strider]

Originally Posted by Peralta

Yeah that's him. Beating the likes of Daniel Ricciardo. He did it twice! It was featured in Autosport in an article about best comebacks in Formula 3.

Except it was Alguersuari he beat. Ricciardo was in BF3 a year later.

[chunterer]

Thought my mind was playing tricks on me!! Thanks for clarifying that strider.

Someone mentioned a few posts back that Sergio hasn't really had much competition from his country so he's bound to look good (or similar?)

I'm not sure that that's a huge issue to debate as at the end of the day once they've moved beyond domestic karting, most driver's priorities, no matter how good they are, is taking on the world's best.

If you asked Lewis Hamilton whether his focus was beating Button and Di Resta or Alonso and Vettel, I bet he'd say he's be more bothered about the latter two?

We could say the same about Australian, New Zealand or anywhere that hasn't had many drivers come through. For example I don't think Webber had many serious rivals from his homeland on the way through, he was just a driver with massive potential and his concern is competing with the rest of the F1 drivers regardless of nationality, same goes for Ricciardo now.

[Mekola]

Originally Posted by Bononi

Some said here, and I agree, that F1 is completely different thing from anything before, so drivers that did well in lower categories can be nothing in F1... for now it's all we can think of.

That's because drivers fortunes are generally digited by F1 team managers, sponsors, manufacturers or even Bernie. How many #2 or lower team drivers didn't shine as they could because the impossibility to have privileges as other favoured drivers.

[wnut]

Originally Posted by Mekola

That's because drivers fortunes are generally digited by F1 team managers, sponsors, manufacturers or even Bernie. How many #2 or lower team drivers didn't shine as they could because the impossibility to have privileges as other favoured drivers.

I disagree here, most number 2 drivers are just plain not as good as the team number 1. The pecking order is determined at every practice and every race. Occasionally a driver may be asked to move over for a team mate when he is directly in front of the better driver, BUT the team number 1 is the best driver in that team, if he isn't he generally loses the number 1 status pretty quickly. Piquet and Brundle with Schumacher.
Prost and Senna would probably have been equal, and Alonso and Hamilton probably had Hamilton as the favoured one, but they were pretty even, as are Vettel and Webber.

I am open to suggestions where this was not the case, it is an interesting thought! Where has a clearly better driver been the number 2.

[wnut]

Originally Posted by strider

Except it was Alguersuari he beat. Ricciardo was in BF3 a year later.

OOOPS!

[Super Hans]

Originally Posted by wnut

I am open to suggestions where this was not the case, it is an interesting thought! Where has a clearly better driver been the number 2.

I'm not sure about 'clearly better' but it could be argued that Ronnie Peterson and Gilles Villeneuve were equally as good as (if not a bit better than) their victorious team-mates in '78 and '79. However, they both knew their role and remained loyal.

That was in the days of proper contracted #2 drivers though. Colin Chapman didn't have to trot out a load of old rhubarb about giving the drivers an equal opportunity, as Christian Horner has to do now.

[Flyin Ryan]

Originally Posted by ghinzani

I always liked Josele Garza and wished he had got that Minardi drive in 88 - he was very underrated.

He drove for Uncle Bobby. Uncle Bobby wasn't very high on him.

There haven't been a great many top line Mexican's since the early 70's...

Well they all looked north instead of across the ocean. If forced to come up with a guy, I'd probably say Adrian Fernandez is the best Mexican since I've been watching racing.

[chunterer]

Agreed, Fernandez was pretty good. He was one of the front runners in Formula Ford over here in the late 80's but seemingly lacked the budget to progress to F3 or whatever?

Michel Jourdain and Mario Dominguez were alright, quick on their day, but Sergio has so far showed many glimpses of superstar potential in my book.

His starting ability and further progress on an opening lap is reminiscent of Montoya and Hamilton, or even Alonso when he's in full on gung ho mode!

[Flyin Ryan]

Originally Posted by chunterer

Agreed, Fernandez was pretty good. He was one of the front runners in Formula Ford over here in the late 80's but seemingly lacked the budget to progress to F3 or whatever?

When the peso collapsed in the early '90s, I think that pretty much stopped all European ambitions for Mexican drivers.

[Mekola]

Originally Posted by wnut

I am open to suggestions where this was not the case, it is an interesting thought! Where has a clearly better driver been the number 2.

Carlos Reutemann during 1981 is an easy one.

[Richard B]

In my opinion Sergio will be "the find" of the 2011 F1 season.

[strider]

I agree.