[Driver] The GOAT - Round One - Button vs Frentzen

[crmalcolm]

The twenty-first match-up in Round One sees Button vs Frentzen.

So who do you vote for as the greater driver?

Jenson Button
Jenson Button is frequently not given the full credit he deserves. This is because Button spent the majority of his career in cars that simply were not good enough to challenge for podiums, let alone wins. As a gauge of this, his teammates scored podiums in only 10.1% of races together, lower than Fernando Alonso’s percentage at 10.3%. The only champion since 1990 with a lower teammate podium percentage is Jacques Villeneuve at 9.1%, owing to his disastrous decision to leave Williams and drive for BAR.

Button demonstrated his high quality in equal machinery against two of the all-time greats: Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso.

One of Button’s strongest attributes was his skill in wet weather, most evident in mixed conditions. Button’s smooth style and exceptional sensitivity allowed him to find time where others could not when grip levels were variable due to rain or a drying surface. It also allowed him to make intuitive strategic decisions. Following whatever Button did was once considered a viable wet race strategy. Of his 15 race victories, 7 were achieved in wet races, giving him one of the highest wet win ratios in history.

In 2000, Button was a surprise pick for Williams, after just two years in single-seaters. No driver had arrived in Formula 1 with so little experience before. The closest was Mike Thackwell, who debuted in 1980 aged 19 in the midst of his third year of car racing. Button’s superlicense application went to committee, requiring 17 votes out of 26 to pass. He received 18.

Button’s first two years in Formula 1 were difficult. In his own opinion, he was “nowhere near ready for Formula 1.” In his first season, he was beaten by his more experienced teammate Ralf Schumacher 3-6 in counting races, 6-11 in qualifying, and 12-24 in points. Then, he moved to Benetton and was convincingly beaten by Giancarlo Fisichella 0-7 in counting races, 4-13 in qualifying, and 12-18 in points.

By 2002, Button was clearly improving. Against Jarno Trulli, he scored 2-4 in counting races, 5-12 in qualifying, and 14-9 in points, although helped by Trulli’s 8 mechanical DNFs to Button’s 5. In 2003, Button joined BAR and immediately outpaced ex-champion Jacques Villeneuve, who had been dismissive of Button’s arrival, beating him 3-2 in counting races, 8-7 in qualifying, and 12-6 in points. As a result, Villeneuve was effectively ousted from his own team.

From the last race of 2003 to the end of 2005, Button raced alongside Takuma Sato at BAR. Sato was a fan-favorite, but he was utterly crushed by the more experienced Button in one of the most one-sided head-to-heads in F1 history, 21-1 in counting races, 28-8 in qualifying, and 127-38 in points.

The next few years were a rollercoaster for Button’s career. Investment from Honda in a works team suggested better results could be on the way, but instead the team slumped, scoring just 6 points in 2007 and 14 points in 2008. When Honda pulled out before the 2009 season due to the global financial crisis, it appeared Button’s career might be finished. Instead, Ross Brawn bought the team and led it to both 2009 titles in one of the sport’s most incredible fairy-tale stories. Although Button won the drivers’ title, it is not rated as one of his strongest season performances, with 2011 rated his absolute peak.

From 2006-2009, Button was paired with Rubens Barrichello, against whom he scored 34-21 in counting races, 34-36 in qualifying, and 160-118 in points. After winning the title, Button moved to McLaren to face the brilliant Lewis Hamilton, in what was considered at best a brave move, at worst a foolhardy one. Over one lap, Hamilton indeed had a unwavering advantage, beating Button 44-14. However, Button’s race pace, consistency, and wet-weather skills saw him match Hamilton more closely than most anticipated, scoring 20-27 in counting races and 657-672 in points (helped by better fortune in the points tally).

As McLaren fell into decline, Button continued to demonstrate his quality, beating teammate Sergio Pérez 11-5 in counting races, 9-10 in qualifying, and 73-49 in points, and beating Kevin Magnussen 14-3 in counting races, 10-9 in qualifying, and 126-55 in points.

Button’s final clear demonstration of his status among the all-time greats was in his performance alongside Fernando Alonso at McLaren-Honda. In a difficult and unreliable car, against a teammate who was fresh off decimating Kimi Räikkönen, the overall tally stood at 9-14 in counting races, 9-22 in qualifying, and 37-65 in points.

Heinz-Harald Frentzen
Heinz-Harald Frentzen rarely rates a mention by F1 pundits when the best drivers of the 1990s are considered these days. The reason is quite simple: in 1997, the only year of his career where he was in a championship-winning car, he dramatically failed to deliver. This performance single-handedly undid Frentzen’s other achievements, which were less visible by way of being in less competitive cars.

On net, Jacques Villeneuve beat Frentzen 12-13 in counting races, 10-23 in qualifying, and 59-102 in points. The only other driver to beat Frentzen in a head-to-head race tally was Nick Heidfeld, against whom Frentzen scored 3-6 in counting races and 7-9 in qualifying, but Frentzen led 13-6 in points.

Frentzen’s results against his other teammates were extremely strong, as shown in the teammate wheel above. Against Johnny Herbert, Frentzen was ahead 5-2 in counting races, 13-3 in qualifying, and 7-4 in points. Against Damon Hill, Frentzen was ahead 10-1 in counting races, 14-2 in qualifying, and 54-7 in points. Against Jarno Trulli, Frentzen scored 7-4 in counting races, 9-18 in qualifying, and 17-15 in points.

[FIRE]

Button