F1 Teammate Battles 2021

[nudge+]

Some interesting teammate battles this year. Who will come out on top at each team this year? 

Discuss. 

[RandoEFC+]

I think Alpine is the only one that's going to be that close to be honest and that's only if Alonso's return goes in a similar vein to Michael Schumacher's which I don't think will happen. 

Hamilton vs Bottas will be the same old story. Perez will be closer to Verstappen than Gasly or Albon ever were and he will probably out-qualify and out-race him a decent handful of times but not over the course of the season. Leclerc vs Sainz will be close. Leclerc has a higher ceiling but Sainz will beat Leclerc whenever he slips up. Could see Sainz beat Leclerc for points in a similar way to how Button did it to Hamilton at McLaren in 2011. Norris will have his moments but Ricciardo's consistency will get him more points. Vettel and Stroll no contest. Gasly should see off Tsunoda comfortably. Raikkonen will out-qualify and out-pace Giovinazzi over the course of the season, the latter could get more points if he ends up ahead in the handful of races where the opportunity presents itself. Schumacher should have enough to beat Mazepin and Russell vs Latifi is no contest.

[Tommy]

Lewis vs. Valtteri is a no brainer. Although many people suggest that Valtteri is going "full Rosberg" this season, I just can't see it happening. 

Max vs. Checo should also be pretty clear. He's the clear number one in the team, and is used to the car. But I think Checo could be closer than Albon and Gasly in the past.

Danny vs. Lando well, on paper Daniel is the faster and more experienced driver. But I can see Lando ending up surprising us all. He is talented. Not on Danny's level yet IMO, but who knows. 

Seb vs. Lance. Well that's just Seb's battle to lose. If the car suits him, and he regains some confidence he should beat Lance pretty clearly. But Stroll is fast on his day, and could be a problem for Seb every now and then. 

Charles vs. Carlos. Most handsome team on the grid! I think it could be close. But in the end I think Charles is naturally the more talented driver in terms of raw racecraft. I can see  Carlos beating him in one or a few occassions though. 

Pierre vs. Yuki. I think Pierre showed us al what a driver he is last season, and he will continue to impress us. So I think he'll be the clear winner in that duel. But it will be interesting to see how quickly Yuki finds his bearings in F1. 

Fernando vs. Esteban. Here's where I voted different compared to the most. I really hope Esteban manages to beat Fernando. He got better and better last season after a bit of a difficult start. But maybe it's just wishful thinking from me. Not a big Alonso fan in terms of personality. 

Kimi vs. Italian Jesus. I completely agree with Rando here. 

Golden Poster Boy Mick vs. Egghead Cuntface Mazepin. Please Mick.

George vs. Latifi is a no brainer. 

[nudge+]

I think Alpine, McLaren, Ferrari and Haas could be very close. Alonso should wipe the floor with Ocon, but he's been out of F1 for a while, so who knows. Lando is not at his best yet, hopefully he keeps on improving this year and can challenge Ricciardo. Leclerc should beat Sainz, but he's still prone to some mistakes, so that could cost him quite a few points. Mazepin is pretty quick and Mick has a tendency to struggle early on, so I wouldn't be surprised if he lost the teammate battle (hope he won't though).

[Stan]

Went for the top option for all but Alpine. That was tough to call but the others were much easier.

[nudge+]

Found this interesting comparison on the Autosport forums.

Qualifying averages between teammates after four races (uses the fastest lap a driver achieves whether that be in Q1, Q2 or Q3):

Russell 0.55s Latifi
Schumacher 0.54s Mazepin
Verstappen 0.34s Perez
Giovinazzi 0.32s Räikkönen
Gasly 0.3s Tsunoda
Ocon 0.27s Alonso
Norris 0.26s Ricciardo
Leclerc 0.22s Sainz
Hamilton 0.2s Bottas
Stroll 0.03s Vettel

[MUFC]

How long do you all think it'll take Ricciardo to be fully confident with his car?

[Tommy]

On 14/03/2021 at 15:47, Tommy said:

Danny vs. Lando well, on paper Daniel is the faster and more experienced driver. But I can see Lando ending up surprising us all. He is talented. Not on Danny's level yet IMO, but who knows. 

Charles vs. Carlos. Most handsome team on the grid! I think it could be close. But in the end I think Charles is naturally the more talented driver in terms of raw racecraft. I can see  Carlos beating him in one or a few occassions though. 

Why hasn't Sky called me yet to be a pundit?