[Driver] The GOAT - Round One - Reutemann vs Berger

[crmalcolm]

The twenty-second match-up in Round One sees Reutemann vs Berger.

So who do you vote for as the greater driver?

Carlos Reutemann
Always a bridesmaid, never a bride, Carlos Reutemann finished the championship in the top 3 four times, but never claimed a title. His potential impact on F1 was reduced by his relatively late start, as he did not race a car until he was already 23 and did not debut in F1 until he was a few months shy of 30.

Reutemann made an immediate impact in F1, with pole position in his first grand prix. Home fans were soon calling him the next Fangio. As a rookie, he showed strong pace against his 43-year-old teammate Graham Hill, scoring 2-1 in counting races, 9-1 in qualifying, and 3-4 in points. He also dominated fellow rookie teammate Wilson Fittipaldi across their first two seasons together.

From 1974-1976, Reutemann raced alongside the Brazilian hero Carlos Pace at Brabham. Both drivers were effectively at their peak. Reutemann proved generally the superior driver to Pace, scoring 10-6 in counting races, 15-17 in qualifying, and 63-39 in points. While 1974 was an extremely strong season for Reutemann, by 1976 he was disillusioned with the team’s switch to unreliable Alfa Romeo engines and negotiated his release.

In 1977, Reutemann moved to a full-time seat at Ferrari, joining Niki Lauda, after initially being signed to fill-in for the injured Lauda in 1976. Now pitted against the best driver on the grid, Reutemann was completely overshadowed. While Lauda stormed to the title, Reutemann finished 4th in the championship with only a single win. In head-to-head stats, Reutemann trailed Lauda 1-11 in counting races, 7-8 in qualifying, and 36-72 in points. For the last two races of 1977 and all of 1978, Reutemann was joined by the rookie Gilles Villeneuve. Reutemann saw off the challenge, beating Villeneuve 6-6 in counting races, 15-3 in qualifying, and 54-17 in points.

Reutemann moved from Ferrari to Lotus for 1979, which proved an unfortunate switch, as Lotus fell into sudden decline, while Ferrari delivered the year’s best car and a title for his replacement, Jody Scheckter. Reutemann was closely matched with reigning champion Mario Andretti, but neither were in the title battle. Against Andretti, Reutemann scored 2-3 in counting races, 7-8 in qualifying, and 20-14 in points. Reutemann was helped by a much lower mechanical DNF rate than Andretti (10 vs. 4), meaning Andretti scored more points per counting race.

Reutemann made a better strategic move in 1980, joining Williams just as they became a serious championship-winning force. However, he was signed on terms of being Alan Jones’ number two, an issue which led to considerable friction since the two drivers were closely matched. Although aged 38-40, Reutemann scored 9-12 in counting races, 16-13 in qualifying, and 98-117 in points. Reutemann came painfully close to a championship in 1981, missing out by a single point after leading going into the final round and starting on pole, hampered by gearbox problems in the race. After just two races with Williams in 1982, he abruptly retired due to ongoing disputes with the team. Williams went on to win that year’s drivers’ title with teammate Keke Rosberg, whom Reutemann was leading by 4 points when he quit.

Gerhard Berger
Gerhard Berger made his mark racing the massively powerful BMW-engined Arrows and Benetton across 1985-1986. In his first full season, Berger was beaten by the slightly more experienced Thierry Boutsen 3-6 in counting races, 4-12 in qualifying, and 3-11 in points. In 1986, his record against the more experienced Teo Fabi was more promising: 2-3 in counting races, 14-2 in qualifying, and 17-2 in points.

For 1987, Berger had offers from Ferrari and McLaren, choosing Ferrari. Across 1987-1988, he beat the team’s lead driver Michele Alboreto 10-3 in counting races, 28-4 in qualifying, and 77-41 in points. In 1989, Berger faced his first high-level test when Nigel Mansell joined Ferrari. It was a difficult season for Berger, marred by 50% mechanical DNFs and a horrific, fiery accident at Imola. His overall record against Mansell was 1-2 in counting races, 7-7 in qualifying, and 15-38 in points.

When Alain Prost left McLaren in 1990, Berger gladly accepted the seat alongside Ayrton Senna. Across 1990-1992, Berger served as a reliable but clearly outpaced number two to Senna, scoring 7-19 in counting races, 8-40 in qualifying, and 135-224 in points.

Berger spent the remainder of his F1 career racing alongside Jean Alesi, first at Ferrari then at Benetton. Although Berger was now aged a little past his peak, their head-to-head record was extremely close: 22-19 in counting races, 35-42 in qualifying, and 126-151 in points. While 1993 was a troubled season for Berger, marred by strange accidents, he bounced back in 1994 while dealing with the trauma of his friend Senna’s death at Imola. The model rates Berger’s 1994 season as his career-best performance. Berger had 8 mechanical DNFs in 16 starts that season, finishing 6 times on the podium, with 1 race win, ending a nearly four-year drought for Ferrari.

[chillibowl]

for sure showing my age/era/knowledge bias on this one. went with Berger.

[steve_r]

Neither should even be in the discussion!

[Aysedasi]

Berger for me.

[FIRE]

Reutemann

[chunterer]

Reutemann most definitely