[imagesource:exposeonline]

It may be difficult to believe but the ‘young’ Lewis Hamilton is currently one of the oldest drivers in the Formula One field. The only driver older than him is Fernando Alonso.

At 39 and 42 respectively, the two Formula One champions are seen as the ‘old guys’ in a sport that is getting younger every season, which inevitably brings up the question of youth versus experience when it comes to drivers in motorsport’s premier race series.

This season, the ideal age for a racing driver has again taken centre stage in a series where quick thinking and quicker reaction times are crucial, and where experience is weighed against the need for lightning-quick reflexes at speeds close to 320 km/h.

The average age of a Formula 1 racer has been progressively declining for decades, but this year’s teams are made up of some of the youngest competitors ever, as well as a few of the oldest in modern history.

The average age of the 26 drivers in that 1950 British Grand Prix was 35. The youngest was 29, the oldest was 53. This year, the average age is 29, with the oldest being 42 and the youngest 23 (not counting an 18-year-old in one race).  But while 13 of today’s drivers are in their 20s, there was only one in 1950, with six in their 40s, and four in their 50s.

In the early years of Formula 1, it was typical to see older, heavier, and more muscular drivers because the cars and the courses demanded a certain physical and mental makeup in order to compete. The cars, which raced on courses with nearly vertical banking, long straightaways, and blind turns, were equipped with massive, potent engines that could produce over 1,000 horsepower.

It took years for drivers to gain the necessary expertise and even physical attributes to compete at the highest levels of racing.

Today’s hybrid cars have downsized turbo engines and complex electronics are controlled through buttons and switches on the steering wheels that have made piloting these machines more like playing a video game. And more than ever, as we saw at the recent Monaco Grand Prix, the job is about conserving the car’s energy and its tyres, rather than racing flat out.

For this reason, former Formula 1 driver Jean Alesi, believes age and experience – not youth – are more valuable in current Formula 1 competition.

“Today, it’s more an advantage than a disadvantage because—apart from qualifying, of course— for the race, they’re obliged to keep up tyre performance by running in a stable window, it’s all about management; and when it’s about management, it’s experience that counts.”

Still, there appears to be a scramble for young drivers again, while at the same time, many veterans like Alonso, Hamilton, and Nico Hulkenberg are being signed.

Alesi thinks it has to do with what’s fashionable at any given moment, and was likely sparked after the season’s third race when Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz was diagnosed with appendicitis. As a result, the team decided to replace him with 18-year-old Formula 2 driver Oliver Bearman.

Bearman lit the imagination of both fans and team directors when he finished the race in seventh position and became the youngest driver ever to score points in their first Formula 1 race, as well as the youngest to race for Ferrari.

Suddenly, team directors wanted to sign others in that age group, including 17-year-old Andrea Kimi Antonelli. As the Mercedes squad is losing Hamilton next year, team principal Toto Wolff has not hidden his interest in Antonelli, likely hoping to avoid missing another opportunity as he did with the reigning world champion, Max Verstappen, a few years back.

Bearman’s fiery performance acted as a reminder of the excitement and raw talent that an untried, young driver can bring.

In 2015, the then 17-year-old Verstappen became the youngest Formula 1 driver in history, which prompted the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), to set an age requirement of 18 to be eligible to compete in the series.

“Instead of looking at Formula 3 and Formula 2 and letting the youngsters do their thing . . . taking the driver who has the right result, we’re speeding things up and saying, ‘Ok, we’ve already decided on this driver and signed him up for 20 years. And then we have the income from them too.’”

Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 Formula 1 world champion, says that by signing teenagers, Formula 1 does not give them time to mature as people, or to grow strong in the head, which requires being “left to take care of yourself and drag yourself through the difficulties.”

But much of Formula One’s history has been written by what could today be seen as ‘old drivers’.

At 46 years old, Juan Manuel Fangio captured his final five championships. Alain Prost won his fourth and last championship in 1993 at the age of 38. Nigel Mansell won his first and only drivers’ championship in 1992 at the age of 39, then he returned to the series two years later to win a race at the age of 41.

Then there’s Mario Andretti, a 38-year-old Formula 1 champion who won his first and last championship in 1978. Up until the age of sixty, he pursued his racing career elsewhere. Andretti even admitted that he and his twin brother, Aldo, altered the birthdate on their drivers’ licenses to appear eligible.

“When I started out, you had to be 21 to race professionally. Today, you can race professionally when you’re 15 or 16 years of age.”

It might just boil down to the individual racer. Michael Schumacher started karting when he was four years old and went on to win seven Formula 1 titles. He didn’t quit for good until he was 43.

Alonso credits a change in diet and exercise for his own longevity. Pre-season checkups revealed that he is in better shape than when he was in his mid-30s. It is theoretically possible for Alonso to continue racing in Formula 1 into his late 40s and beyond, but he has acknowledged that “you have to give up everything in life… Formula 1 requires total dedication.”

“I don’t know if I will be racing until 50, with such a demanding calendar and things like that. Not for the abilities, but because there are other things in life that I’m curious about.”

Andretti agrees. “It’s about how much satisfaction you get out of driving,” the racer says. “If you love it, you’ll keep doing it as long as you can.”

[source:robbreport]