Double world champion Lewis Hamilton is the best driver on the grid, regardless of machinery, according to former F1 driver Alex Zanardi.
The Italian, who is now a gold-medal winning paralympian following the loss of both his legs, claims Fernando Alonso is the only driver that “comes close” to Hamilton.
“Honestly, I believe that the outcome of the last Formula 1 World Championship was right,” Zanardi told Leo Turrini. “I am not talking about the machinery, I am talking about the driver.
“In my opinion, Hamilton is the best of those on the grid at the moment. Perhaps the only one who comes close to him is Alonso. But I think Lewis is a step above,” he added.
The 48-year-old meanwhile believes the pairing of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen will be an interesting one as both have suffered disappointing seasons at the hands of their team-mates.
“I think Vettel is a great driver, maybe not at the level of Hamilton or Alonso, however, we are talking about a very very competitive driver, who will surely get to Maranello with the right spirit.”
He added: “Apart from the car, which of course remains important, it will be interesting to see how Vettel and Raikkonen will react to the latest experiences in 2015.
“In 2014, Seb was put under by [Daniel] Ricciardo. Similarly Kimi declined significantly compared to Fernando. How will they adapt to a machine that we are told will not be the fastest? It will be very interesting to see their performance.”
Discussion about this post