(Putting This In Anti Tags To Be Safe But I Don't Think I'm Anti More Than Just Dissapointed)

(Putting this in anti tags to be safe but I don't think I'm anti more than just dissapointed)

Myself and some friends were chatting about why it feels bad if Lando wins the WDC

It's because he hasn't had that "wow" drive (yet)

When you look at drivers like Lewis and Max (actual world champions) and Charles and maybe George (both definitely potential world champions), all of them have iconic races that people point to to watch - that is a race that only they (or maybe a select few) could have done at that point in time.

It's the race that everyone talks about, no matter who wins or whatever, everyone is talking about that driver; "did you see what they did though?!"

Sure, load of drivers have had great recovery drives (like Lando now! Baku 2024, 15th to 4th), but could any of them have done what Lewis Hamilton did in 2021 Brazil, last to first in the thick of a championship fight? It really doesn't fee like it- iconic drive from Hamilton, its all everyone was talking about. Wow. Not even Max could do that the same year in Sochi (last to 2nd).

It doesn't even have to be a winning drive- Sure, in 2016 the championship was heating up between Hamilton and Rosberg, but nobody was really talking about that in Brazil because did you see what Max Verstappen did with his car? An iconic recovery drive in the wet that took out other champions like Raikonnen at the same time! Niki Lauda took his hat off for that drive- iconic! Wow.

Even this year in Monza, sure Lando closed the gap to Max but did you see what Charles Leclerc did? He won with a brilliant tyre management, holding off the Mclaren of Piastri! Wow. (We're debating whether this one is truly an "iconic" drive, but Charles has had several of these moments already too, like holding off Hamilton himself to win in Monza 2019 too)

And Lando just... hasn't inspired people the same way?

He's had some good drives but that's kinda it? The best ones we could think of are some of his recovery drives (do you really want a world champions who can only do recovery drives though?) And maybe that time he was leading in Sochi 2021 vs Hamilton? It was painful when he span out (that was more mclarens fault too hoenstly), and people did sorta talk about it... for like 5 minutes until Max came 2nd and the championship talk was back on.

Lando is a good driver, they all are, but he hasn't had a "wow" drive where everyone was talking about him and his skills only.

(Miami we think was more about the safety car and Zandvoort wasn't iconic because everyone had just spent 2 years hating on Max for doing the same thing in the dominant car at the time, and then Lewis before him. Lando wasn't alone in being able to do that. If Lewis, Max, Charles had the car they would also do the same thing.)

So it's just sort of "eh, sure" when people talk about Lando being world champion. Sure, I guess, whatever.

He's not properly "wow"ed us really :/