Baffling Belgium
Since its creation in the nineteenth century, Belgium has sought to distinguish itself in curious ways from its grander European neighbours with footprints stretching across the world. It all began with King Leopold II. Uncomfortable about his standing among the ranks of imperial European rulers, Belgium's second monarch, a greedy, scheming man, found a very handy outlet for his ambitions in the vast area of central Africa that is the Congo. Through guile and chicanery, King Leopold II succeeded in having the Congo declared as his personal possession and he used his status as its owner and ruler to maximum effect. The many headed monster that Leopold conceived in the process continues to ravage the Congo to this day and ensures that the very name of Leopold's own country sticks in the craw of many an African.
I have often thought that King Leopold's success in sneaking in under the radar of the British, the French and the Germans to steal Africa's biggest prize, is perhaps symptomatic of the manner in which Belgium has succeeded in capturing the hearts of the world's motor racing fans in spite of itself. One does not think "Belgium" when one contemplates the provenance of super cars like Aston Martin, Ferrari or Porsche. Nor does one plan a trip to, say, Liege to visit a museum dedicated to the motor vehicle. The fast motor car has its roots in familiar places like Germany, England, France and Italy, so it is hardly surprising that these are the countries which have historically produced motor racing talent. Just as I do not know of any Belgian motor car, I also have never seen any Belgian driver make a name for himself in Formula One.
And yet Belgium has one of the most impressive, most celebrated and most historic racing circuits in the world: Spa-Francorchamps. It is a remarkable achievement when one thinks about it; and Spa is a pretty remarkable place. High speed corners like the nerve-jangling Eau Rouge and very changeable weather conditions in the Ardenne mountains have always made the Belgian Grand Prix an irresistible draw for drivers and fans alike. I have always loved it.
If you look closely at the list of drivers who have managed to conquer Spa in recent years, you will observe two things, each of which is interesting in its own right. The first is that Spa is loved by the sort of hard-boiled, uncompromising driver who receives no pleasure from life unless he is driving very fast and treating everybody else like they have leprosy. No surprise, then, that the two most successful drivers at Spa have been Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher. The second and more surprising thing about the list is the absence from it of any of the current crop of title challengers. I ougt to qualify that last sentence: Lewis Hamilton won at Spa in 2008 but the FIA (Ferrari International Assistance) took his win away from him and gifted it to Ferrari's Felipe Massa. But the name that stands out in Spa's recent history is that of the Finnish rake, Kimi Raikkonen. Raikkonen managed to win every single Belgian Grand Prix from 2004 to 2009, his last year in Formula One. This, for me, is all the evidence I need to confirm my view that Hamilton and Raikkonen are the most complete F1 drivers of the 21st century.
But, excepting his love of Spa, Raikkonen was never about doing more than just enough to get by. Once he had attained all of F1's big prizes - a Monaco win, a World Championship and a Ferrari drive - he did not feel motivated to do much else than enjoy himself. Nevertheless, in his inimitable laconic way, Raikkonen secured his place in the memory of F1 addicts like myself forever and a day and is sorely missed. This is not a universally shared sentiment. The mood in Maranello is definitely not pro-Raikkonen. Ferrari cut a bad deal with him when they signed him up and are still paying Raikkonen a great deal of money even though he doesn't drive for them. He was contracted to drive for Ferrari until the end of 2010 and is therefore still entitled to draw a salary of €16 million this year. This puts him at joint second place - with Hamilton - in the F1 drivers' pay league after Fernando Alonso at €30 million. Not bad for a chap who spends his days mooching about Helsinki chasing skirts and getting pissed, is it?
Spa's fearsome reputation raises obvious questions about all of F1's glitterati but mostly about double world champion and major league arsehole, Fernando Alonso. When accused of having a contemptuous attitude towards people, all Alonso has to do is point to his meritorious achievements since joining Formula One, not least winning back-to-back world championships. But the Belgian Grand Prix is the chink in his armour of arrogance. When I think about Alonso and Spa, I am reminded of a lecture I attended a little while ago by an arrogant American who ran a Hedge Fund in London. When I asked him a searching question about his business, he took umbrage and angrily said "If you think you're so damned smart, why aren't you rich yourself?" Well, the question for Mr Alonso is this: "If you are as good as you say you are, why haven't you won at Spa?"
I have no doubt that this is something that niggles the prickly Spaniard and, doubtless, he will be looking to change the position this weekend. A win will be useful for him if he is to arrest the momentum of the Red Bull cars but I think it may be a tall order if the weather stays dry.
Did I say dry? There is the rub. It will not be.
Put a few bob on Lewis Hamilton for the win and do,
Enjoy Spa!
Gitau
27 August 2010
I have often thought that King Leopold's success in sneaking in under the radar of the British, the French and the Germans to steal Africa's biggest prize, is perhaps symptomatic of the manner in which Belgium has succeeded in capturing the hearts of the world's motor racing fans in spite of itself. One does not think "Belgium" when one contemplates the provenance of super cars like Aston Martin, Ferrari or Porsche. Nor does one plan a trip to, say, Liege to visit a museum dedicated to the motor vehicle. The fast motor car has its roots in familiar places like Germany, England, France and Italy, so it is hardly surprising that these are the countries which have historically produced motor racing talent. Just as I do not know of any Belgian motor car, I also have never seen any Belgian driver make a name for himself in Formula One.
And yet Belgium has one of the most impressive, most celebrated and most historic racing circuits in the world: Spa-Francorchamps. It is a remarkable achievement when one thinks about it; and Spa is a pretty remarkable place. High speed corners like the nerve-jangling Eau Rouge and very changeable weather conditions in the Ardenne mountains have always made the Belgian Grand Prix an irresistible draw for drivers and fans alike. I have always loved it.
If you look closely at the list of drivers who have managed to conquer Spa in recent years, you will observe two things, each of which is interesting in its own right. The first is that Spa is loved by the sort of hard-boiled, uncompromising driver who receives no pleasure from life unless he is driving very fast and treating everybody else like they have leprosy. No surprise, then, that the two most successful drivers at Spa have been Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher. The second and more surprising thing about the list is the absence from it of any of the current crop of title challengers. I ougt to qualify that last sentence: Lewis Hamilton won at Spa in 2008 but the FIA (Ferrari International Assistance) took his win away from him and gifted it to Ferrari's Felipe Massa. But the name that stands out in Spa's recent history is that of the Finnish rake, Kimi Raikkonen. Raikkonen managed to win every single Belgian Grand Prix from 2004 to 2009, his last year in Formula One. This, for me, is all the evidence I need to confirm my view that Hamilton and Raikkonen are the most complete F1 drivers of the 21st century.
But, excepting his love of Spa, Raikkonen was never about doing more than just enough to get by. Once he had attained all of F1's big prizes - a Monaco win, a World Championship and a Ferrari drive - he did not feel motivated to do much else than enjoy himself. Nevertheless, in his inimitable laconic way, Raikkonen secured his place in the memory of F1 addicts like myself forever and a day and is sorely missed. This is not a universally shared sentiment. The mood in Maranello is definitely not pro-Raikkonen. Ferrari cut a bad deal with him when they signed him up and are still paying Raikkonen a great deal of money even though he doesn't drive for them. He was contracted to drive for Ferrari until the end of 2010 and is therefore still entitled to draw a salary of €16 million this year. This puts him at joint second place - with Hamilton - in the F1 drivers' pay league after Fernando Alonso at €30 million. Not bad for a chap who spends his days mooching about Helsinki chasing skirts and getting pissed, is it?
Spa's fearsome reputation raises obvious questions about all of F1's glitterati but mostly about double world champion and major league arsehole, Fernando Alonso. When accused of having a contemptuous attitude towards people, all Alonso has to do is point to his meritorious achievements since joining Formula One, not least winning back-to-back world championships. But the Belgian Grand Prix is the chink in his armour of arrogance. When I think about Alonso and Spa, I am reminded of a lecture I attended a little while ago by an arrogant American who ran a Hedge Fund in London. When I asked him a searching question about his business, he took umbrage and angrily said "If you think you're so damned smart, why aren't you rich yourself?" Well, the question for Mr Alonso is this: "If you are as good as you say you are, why haven't you won at Spa?"
I have no doubt that this is something that niggles the prickly Spaniard and, doubtless, he will be looking to change the position this weekend. A win will be useful for him if he is to arrest the momentum of the Red Bull cars but I think it may be a tall order if the weather stays dry.
Did I say dry? There is the rub. It will not be.
Put a few bob on Lewis Hamilton for the win and do,
Enjoy Spa!
Gitau
27 August 2010
posted by Gitau at 12:38 pm
1 Comments:
A keen reader in South Africa has pointed out to me that there have been 22 Belgian drivers in the history of Formula One. Two of them, Jackie Icks and Thierry Boutsen, won Grands Prix. I suppose I owe Belgium an apology!
Gitau
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