[nuew]

Originally Posted by Chalu

I think my post has touched a raw nerve with Schumi fans.

2 wrongs don't make it right. Bringing Senna to justify Schumi's actions is hilarious.

I don't think most were trying to JUSTIFY Schumacher's actions bringing Senna into the picture. It was just to point out how a negative trait was used by some to prove that Schumacher doesn't deserve his place among the greats while Senna was put on a pedestal. It was also a comparison based on two drivers having very similar on track manners as much as the desire to win at any cost. The misconducts of Schumacher are to be condemned as much as Senna. But those misconducts aren't enough to prove they were just deliberate cheats and they couldn't win without them considering the skill that made them much faster than most of the competition.

[deetjohn]

More than that of a driver, the capability that I cherish most in Michael is his sheer ability to lift the whole team. And that has a wide range when its Michael. A great driver can lift the whole team with his performance. For instance, putting the car where it didn't deserve to be following a bad race weekend helps the whole team to let off steam and build on that. Many drivers can do this, maybe not as often as the great ones, but it still happens.

Where Michael transcends others is his monumental commitment and effort towards elevating a team from abyss. It happened with Benetton first - the team was on the ascent but it was not a champion team. Then they hired the fast and very young Michael. They even had to win a case in court with Jordan to get him. And there were a few years where it was only podiums and wins, but then came the two championship titles.

Michael didn't stop there and took a huge risk by joining Ferrari. If we think the team is going through a crisis now with no title after 2008, we should see the state of the team back in the late 90s. The team was just the name, the rest were in shambles. But the work was on! A lot of legends (whom we all know now) were there, but it was all centered around Michael. He had the talent in spades, but that didn't stop him from putting in a shift week after week, year after year following the initial disappointments or catastrophes rather! There is no better incentive for a designer or a mechanic or a strategist to push the envelope when you have such a driver shouldering the burden! And the rest is history - and do not forget the team continued to win titles even after Michael' retirement. That was one hell of a foundation!

What people often forget is Micheal's stint at Mercedes. We have an all conquering team now, but I really do not think they would have gotten here this high and fast without him. If you disagree, just listen to Ross Brawn who was instrumental in getting Michael back there! Sure, the magic alluded him on the track with Mercedes, except for a few weekends, but the bedrock of the team couldn't be stronger!

And have you ever heard Michael complaining or belittling the team? Even in the heat of the moment, he never did that. That is really sublime for someone so able, competent and ambitious in the high pressure world of F1 circus. He was really someone you wanted to be part of your team! He elevated them all with performance, perseverance and passion!

So, that's three all conquering teams that the man had a huge part of play in building and sustaining. I do not think many greats or legends can state their claim like that!

[iceman7]

I participated in this vote too, and I voted for Bernie Ecclestone. For me the sport is where it is today largely because of the way Bernie took the sport to market and generated revenue of it.

Michael has his own place in F1 history and will remain there forever as a legend. But for me, Bernie has been more influential to the sport than Michael.

[vipul_singh]

I feel this may a 'non-helpful' post, but to this day, seeing photos of 'M.Schumacher' in his heydays (such as the ones in the opening post) sends chills down my spine. He has been my hero, not really so much for his driving, but his commitment to work and motivation to deliver his best.

[Sujoy76]

Well deserved. For time time, the name Michael Schumacher was almost synonymous with Formula 1. But I guess had Ayrton Senna been alive, it would have been a tough call to choose the most influential person of F1. For me Senna and Schumi will remain Legands of F1 forever and they share the podium.


Legends of F 1

[ds.raikkonen]

Yes, I would rate MSC as the most influential person in F1. Here is why:

a) Being an Indian with limited coverage of the sport in the late '90s/early '00s, his success, along with the intense rivalry with Hakkinen (who too was second to none) was what news articles used to be full of which attracted me to F1 in the first place. Still followed reading about races on 'Auto India', 'Overdrive' and 'Auto Motor & Sport' rather than watching (as I was around 15 then and a cricket fanatic, which I still am).

b) MSC's 'Matrioshka brain' level thinking about race tactics, strategy, testing etc. led teams like Scuderia Ferrari get one up against stern resistance of Mclaren and Williams, who were doing quite well in late '90s.

c) His race craft even on inferior Bridgestone tyres, especially while struggling in 2005 and 2006 was simply brilliant. Renault and McLaren who had much younger and talented drivers like Alonso and Raikkonen dueled between themselves in 2005, but MSC used to grab any opportunities presented to him. Like the tense finish at Imola in '05, beating Renault & Michelin in Italy, China '06 etc.

d) He simply out lasted every other influential drivers like Senna (who could have done wonders had he not crashed at Imola), Hakkinen, Villeneuve, Mansell, Hill etc.

e) One can even argue that he made F1 boring due to the dominance of SF over others like Vettel-Red Bull did later on. But his pace and tactics (hot headedness, team order controversies etc) is what made him known and even influential. But that happens with all the greats.

[Hawkeye269]

influential adjective
- having a lot of influence on somebody/something

influence noun
- the effect that somebody/something has on the way a person thinks or behaves or on the way that something works or develops

This is how the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary defines "influential" and "influence". Who then was the most influential person in F1 history?

It surely doesn't matter who your favourite driver is. Or who was the most talented driver of all time. Or who has the most titles, won the most races, had the most podium finishes, faced stiffer competition, raced the less dominant car, ran the cleanest races... none of these matter. All that matters for the purpose of this particular poll is:

1. the effect that person had on the way F1 fans and other stakeholders think or behave; and
2. the effect that person had on the way that F1 works or developed

As a sports fan - and this particular poll was directed at sports fans - it is easy to see how a driver had to come out on top. Even if your head were to argue that, say, Bernie Ecclestone (sports administrator) or Enzo Ferrari (team boss) exerted the greatest influence on F1, it is but natural that your heart would eventually triumph in this context. In a similar vein, I can't imagine fans choosing Dalmiya over Tendulkar, or Jordan losing out to Phil Jackson.

Personally, if I had to make an objective assessment (insofar as it is possible to do so), I think the man who ran the sport for 40-odd years, shaping it into the glittering global spectacle it is today, is definitely the clear winner in terms of "the effect he had on the way that F1 works or developed". It may be argued that the global phenomenon of a Schumacher (to take an example) would not have been possible without the work that Ecclestone did to build and market F1. Or indeed that the legends of Fangio, Lauda and Senna would perhaps not be so firmly established in the collective imagination were it not for the current popularity of the premier automotive sport... which can be directly attributed to Ecclestone's helming of affairs at the top.

Think of it this way - both Valentino Rossi and Michael Schumacher are not only legends, but also strong contenders for the title of G.O.A.T. in MotoGP and F1 respectively. They both won a record seven World Championships, and that too around the same time (Schumacher's championship wins were between 1994 and 2004, while Rossi's occurred between 2001 and 2009). And they were both at the very top of the two most premier forms of racing in the world. But ask yourselves this question - which of the two was (and is) the bigger household name? Please note the stress on "household" as opposed to informed audiences such as the ones we may find on automotive forums! ;)

In that sense, I agree with iceman7:

Originally Posted by iceman7

I participated in this vote too, and I voted for Bernie Ecclestone. For me the sport is where it is today largely because of the way Bernie took the sport to market and generated revenue of it.

Michael has his own place in F1 history and will remain there forever as a legend. But for me, Bernie has been more influential to the sport than Michael.

All this is not to say that Messrs. Fangio, Lauda, Senna and Schumacher ought not to be feted, or to ignore the fact that they were once-in-a-generation talents. But it is tough to ignore that their current legions of admirers would likely have numbered far less if Ecclestone hadn't transformed F1 into the global enterprise that it is today.

But let us switch gears and accept the inevitable, which is to say that when emotions go into overdrive the heart will always triumph over the head. Heck, despite what I've written so far, even I would want to see a driver top this poll! And then there is the small matter of influence also being determined by "the effect that the person in question had on the way F1 fans and other stakeholders think or behave". And surely a race car driver has a much greater effect on an F1 fan than anybody else associated with the sport possibly could!

Viewed through this lens, let us then examine the relative merits of Lauda, Senna and Schumacher. Keep in mind that we are not discussing which one of these legends is the G.O.A.T. but instead which of them exerted the greatest influence on the sport and its fans. It is interesting to note the results of Schumacher's match-ups against Lauda (56% to 44%) and Senna (52% to 48%). Much closer than when Schumi went up against Fangio (72% to 28%) or Bernie (61% to 39%).

Full disclosure: I am obviously an Ayrton Senna fan (see the quote in my signature block at the bottom of this post). But one's personal likes and dislikes cannot be allowed to cloud one's sense of objectivity. And from this perspective, in my view, Schumi is clearly the most influential. To bolster my point, permit me to selectively quote my fellow Team BHPians:

Originally Posted by Scarlet_Rider

Was an inspiration to millions of racers around the world – including many on the current grid.
...
Pioneering fitness regime and unrivalled attention to detail in preparation – forced others to follow his lead and adopt same professional, committed approach.

Originally Posted by GTO

Michael's domination was so powerful that FIA had to change the rules!

Originally Posted by RaceHorse

The moment when someone says F1 or read about F1, the first name that comes to mind is Schumacher.

He was a childhood hero for many, collecting and purchasing wall posters of his and pasting all over the room...

May be its the media in childhood, whatever the news we read about F1 it was never without mention of him.

Originally Posted by rahulcmoulee

Schumacher is the name that immediately springs to mind when you hear F1. Even many non F1 fans know him and he brought loads of fans into the sport.

Originally Posted by Revmatch99

He changed the game in terms of fitness, no driver was on his level when it comes to fitness in the 90s and this pushed everyone to get better and the reason why driver fitness is a top priority now.

Originally Posted by motorworks

Stating that Schumacher was voted as the most influential person out of sympathy is pure ignorance. Rather, the logical reasoning for him being the most influential was simply because his rise coincided with the increase in viewership of F1 and his name was almost synonymous with F1 during the late 90s and early 2000s. People in third world countries who never heard of F1 did so only because there was this driver called Schumacher.

Originally Posted by ABHI_1512

Schumacher’s rise coincided with the increase in viewership and most of the voters were the millennials...
But here, the talk is of influence, so may be Schumacher deserves that.

Originally Posted by DicKy

The one who made me watch Formula 1, which as a child I derided as boring compared to WRC.
...
His physical fitness routine is legendary, and remember Narain Karthikeyan being awestruck, saying he could never match Schumacher's fitness regime or stamina.

If anyone doubts his influence, everyone knows how much of the common Indian public knows about Formula One. Right???

Go and ask any driver with 10 plus years of driving experience, just ask any cab driver, if they know who Michael Schumacher is. Chances are they won't know what Formula One is, but will tell that Michael Schumacher is a great racing driver.

Originally Posted by Arjun Bharadwaj

For a non F1 fan like me(maybe simply due to lack of intelligence or patience to understand F1 well), Schumacher was like an equivalent to Tendulkar. Like the God of F1.

Originally Posted by Mik

Something I witnessed on a train journey once in 2004.
Two students from a rural background were discussing sports. As they went from sport to sport, it was obvious cricket was the only thing they actually had any idea about. When it came to motor racing this is what the guy said "kuch pata nahi par yeh pataa hai ke jab se paida huuye hai shumakar jeet raha hai" ("have no idea but all I know is that since I was born, Schumacher has been winning")

Originally Posted by Tassem

Schumacher is to F1 what Michael Jackson was to pop. You may not know anything about either domain, but you'd know both of them.

Now that, is influence.

Originally Posted by nuew

There could be debates on who was the greatest F1 driver ever. But Michael Schumacher was the most influential person in F1 in my opinion.
...
Michael Schumacher came at an era where the population of developing countries was having more and more access to TV and global sports. His fierce driving style and winning streak soon won him millions of fans.

Originally Posted by anbusatish

I feel pretty nostalgic, whenever I hear the name “Michael Schumacher”. Schumi (fondly called by his fans ) was the reason I started watching F1, in the times when Cricket was all that boys talked in sport.

Originally Posted by ds.raikkonen

Yes, I would rate MSC as the most influential person in F1. Here is why:

a) Being an Indian with limited coverage of the sport in the late '90s/early '00s, his success, along with the intense rivalry with Hakkinen (who too was second to none) was what news articles used to be full of which attracted me to F1 in the first place. Still followed reading about races on 'Auto India', 'Overdrive' and 'Auto Motor & Sport' rather than watching (as I was around 15 then and a cricket fanatic, which I still am).

In the course of writing this rather lengthy post, I was about to end by saying that we should be mindful that this thread is about the "most influential" and not "the best"... and then I saw Sujoy76's post which sums things up rather well:

Originally Posted by Sujoy76

Well deserved. For time time, the name Michael Schumacher was almost synonymous with Formula 1. But I guess had Ayrton Senna been alive, it would have been a tough call to choose the most influential person of F1.

[ds.raikkonen]

Originally Posted by Hawkeye269

In the course of writing this rather lengthy post, I was about to end by saying that we should be mindful that this thread is about the "most influential" and not "the best"... and then I saw Sujoy76's post which sums things up rather well:

Definitely, if you read point 'a' of my post, I mentioned that it was his 'influence' which led to F1 being popular among many people who were not familiar with the sport, especially in the late '90s, in countries who did not have any motorsports culture (generally speaking). Remaining points simply suggested what made him so popular in F1, especially among the legion of Ferrari fans.

Bernie Ecclestone was definitely a visionary who brought the F1 magic to many asian countries, but that was probably more due to commercial reasons rather than catering to the fans. Even Max Mosley contributed to F1's success to an extent in that way.

Perhaps the vote should have been for two categories:
a) Most influential driver
b) Most influential non-driver