F1 » Lauda: F1 drivers should race in DTM too

I feel bad for Niki that people keep putting microphones in front of him and allowing him to constantly make the mistake of opening his mouth.

I know the guy is an F1 legend, but seriously, not one word that guy has said in the last 10 years has ever made an ounce of sense. If he''s not making pre-season predictions about F1 that invariably turn out wrong, at which point he changes his mind, he''s making nonsense comments like this as if it were still the 1970''s. Back then drivers could do double duty because they didn''t have the never-ending sponsor commitments, fitness regimes etc. This is 2009 Niki! There''s no chance an F1 driver today could commit to anything other than F1.

nikki is right. the top drivers should not be restricted to F1 only. in the good old days, most raced sports protos as well. but i dont think that dtm is the ideal second string series to race in. they should possibly race in fia gt, as this is the showcase for production sports cars and the manufacturers would stand to gain more from interest in that series. maybe then toyota, renault and merc would join the existing ferraris,porsches, occasional bmw etc

dootdeedoo, just saw your comment. it was the contracts that stopped their paticipation in other categories!

Be nice to see them in other series, not sure DTM is the one though it looks so boring

"dootdeedoo, just saw your comment. it was the contracts that stopped their paticipation in other categories! "

Sure, some teams may contractually disallow it, but they don't just do it for no reason. They do it because modern motorsport is so intensive that distractions cant be afforded. It's important their pilots are solely committed.

These days, competing in most top categories of motorsport is more than a full time job. Do you know just how little spare time a current F1 or MotoGP pilot has during the season?

The era of F1 playboys racing all sorts of cars is ove

That is a good idea the likes of Hill, Clarke, Rindt, and more all raced in lower groups F2 or Saloon it would for more interest across the whole sport, and give others the chance to see what is deemed the best in the sport.

and everyone wants tiger woods to play their tournament. With the small amount of free time they do have i do not think drivers need to donate time to pick up the numbers at any event. they would do better recruiting retired drivers. Everyone wants a piece of the pie once someone hits stardom.

Another concern with this plan is that F1 stars will overshadow potential new talents, since not only are F1 front-runners (theoretically) more experienced and talented, but (on a more practical level) the best equipment will always be reserved for them in whatever lesser series their managers allow them to compete in.

Just like Ralf Schumacher was the man to beat last year in DTM!!!

Ralf is a retired driver, and one whose fighting spirit retired half a decade ago...
If Lewis or SV went to DTM, they sure as hell are going to get a new car or they won't go at all.