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Imagine you are going to start a Formula 1 team. You have a well-filled bank account like Lawrence Stroll and you also have a time machine. Which drivers do you take? Which car do you drive them in? And who do you take on as a team boss? GPUpdate.net presented this completely hypothetical situation to several people. Here’s the ideal F1 team from: Ziggo Sports presenter Rob Kamphues.
The second driver: Gilles Villeneuve
Normally we kick off this section by car, but Kamphues asks if he can exceptionally start with the second driver. “Because I would be the first to sign Gilles Villeneuve,” he explains. “You don’t become a champion with that, but with him you know for sure that the first driver is on edge.” And Villeneuve can be trusted, Kamphues believes. “He is not Fernando Alonso, who can split in two in a team.”
Kamphues appears to have experienced Villeneuve up close. “My brother and I both spoke a little Italian and did chores for Ferrari during the Dutch Grand Prix. We did some shopping for them and in return we got paddock cards,” said Kamphues. At the time, Formula 1 was a lot less closed, Kamphues remembers. “The drivers were just approachable. There were no motorhomes, so they just walked around a bit. Then you approached them and asked them for autographs or had them photographed.”
That is also how they spoke with Villeneuve. “I remember how my brother once showed a whole stack of his own photos to Villeneuve,” Kamphues continues. “There were about a hundred and Villeneuve browsed through it with almost interest.” Grinning: “And my brother was a bit upset afterwards that he hadn’t taken the time to look at everything!” Other Times: Nowadays, a fan would kill to get that much attention from a Formula 1 driver. Kamphues: “My brother still has an original visor of the Villeneuve helmet. He just got it, because they didn’t participate in any further.”
Incidentally, it was not just shopping for Ferrari. The men from Maranello even visited Kamphues in the late 1970s. “The Ferrari mechanics once slept in my mother’s attic,” said Kamphues. It was at the time that Formula 1 not only came to Zandvoort to race, but also to test. “They just didn’t want to be in the same hotel all the time!” Kamphues laughs, explaining the Ferrari mechanics’ alternative leak.
The first driver: Max Verstappen
Then the first driver. “Max Verstappen. There is no other way,” it sounds resolutely. “Even someone who is straightforward and plays little to no games with the team or his teammate,” Kamphues sees an agreement between Verstappen and Villeneuve. Although according to the Ziggo Sport presenter, there is also a significant difference between the two: “Gilles always went for the win. He wanted to be the fastest every round. Max is more savvy. He just wants to become world champion. Point.”
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“Max wants to be the best, but knows that he does not necessarily have to be the fastest every round. He can hold back when necessary,” said Kamphues, referring, among other things, to the tire management of the Limburger the races. “But everyone chooses Max as the first driver? You’re crazy if you don’t! Who else should you take?” Kamphues wonders aloud. “Yes, you can also go for a Lewis Hamilton or a Michael Schumacher or some other big champion. But I think Max is more exciting. Max is spectacular racing, as were Ayrton Senna and Gilles Villeneuve. A talent of the outside category. “
“Is Max ready for the title? I asked him about it late last year when I had that big interview with him. Then he said,” I’m ready for the title. Give me a Mercedes and I’ll beat Hamilton. ” Then I said that you can only be sure of that when it comes to that, you only know if you shoot the penalty, in injury time, in the Champions League final, when you stand in front of that goal with the ball at your feet and you After that, a glimpse into history shows that there are also people who fail at the moment supreme. Max then replied: “Yes, you are right about that. You only know that when the time comes. But I “I’m ready. Don’t worry. I know.” So I think Max is ready! “
In short, Kamphues has every confidence in Verstappen as the leader. “He will undoubtedly have to learn something, but everyone who goes for his first title will have to. There is of course an immense pressure involved in a title fight – assuming it will not be such a Sebastian Vettel title but one that really fought for It is difficult to say in advance whether someone can handle that pressure. But if someone is cool in all circumstances, Max is. “
The test driver: Robin Frijns
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Robin Frijns has a contract ready for the role of test and reserve driver. “Besides George Russell, there is only one other driver who has become champion in every junior class in which he has raced and that is Robin Frijns”, Kamphues explains his choice. With a smile: “I am also friends with him and he is an ambassador for the Groot Hart foundation, so go ahead!”
The Maastricht driver became champion in the European Formula BMW, the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup and the World Series by Renault, before becoming a test and reserve driver in Formula 1 at Sauber and Caterham. Unfortunately, there was no chance of a race in the royal class. Frijns found shelter with Audi, for which he achieved various successes, and has also been active in the electric variant of Formula 1 since 2015: Formula E. “Robin is a truly unsung talent”, Kamphues says. “If there is one person I would have liked to see at the start of a Formula 1 race, in a Toro Rosso or whatever, he is. He is so mercilessly fast and his car control is fantastic.”
“Robin is often said to be arrogant, but if one person is not arrogant, it is Robin,” says Kamphues. “He’s just very phlegmatic. It makes him seem uninterested.” Kamphues compares with former Formula 1 champion Kimi Raikkonen, who is also known for his surlyness. “They’re both like, ‘What does it matter to me? Just put me in that car and I’ll show it to you.’ But believe me: of all the ambassadors for Groot Hart, he is the one who most often calls to ask when he can drive a child around again. Well, if you do, then in my view you are not arrogant. “
The car: Lotus 72D
“This is perhaps the original car,” says Kamphues about the chosen weapon. “The ideal Formula 1 car. Lotus team boss Colin Chapman always came up with revolutionary designs and this was one of them. There were a little too many deaths in his cars, but that was part of the sport at the time. Chapman always said:” If the car doesn’t fall apart 200 meters after the finish, we’ve built it too heavily. ” And so his cars crashed about 200 meters after the finish line. But not infrequently it happened just before. ” So fast, but extremely fragile cars.
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The choice for the Lotus 72D comes after Kamphues initially opted for the Ferrari 312T. “The Ferrari that Niki Lauda drove in 1975 was supreme,” Kamphues said of his initial choice. “That was an incredibly good car. A twelve-cylinder. And a beautiful thing to see.” Lauda became world champion for the first time in ’75 with the 312T. The car was particularly superior in qualifying; nine out of fourteen races, the Austrian started on pole. Lauda crossed the line five times.
Kamphues does have a soft spot for Ferrari. “It is simply the most beautiful brand. They have a whole people behind them and the resources are inexhaustible. You do not run the risk there as with Red Bull or Williams that the plug is pulled out for financial reasons. In addition, I have a weakness for Italy. If I could lead a team, Ferrari would be my first choice. “
The team boss: Toto Wolff
“I think Toto Wolff is an incredibly good manager,” said Kamphues, after first making it clear that Ron Dennis ‘with his OCD’ and Enzo Ferrari will certainly not be. “I think he is also the most successful team boss in Formula 1 history. Keeping Mercedes at the top for so long is an exceptional achievement. When Ross Brawn left, everyone thought: now it is collapsing. And then Paddy Lowe left, everyone thought: Now it’s going to collapse But Toto has kept the team afloat I think he’s a nice man He’s got his heart on the tongue, shows himself to be fragile and is also quite straightforward Mark Rutte of Formula 1! There is not much charisma about it but in the meantime he arranges it all! ”
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