Lippy Irishman Eddie Irvine never shied away from a showdown, conversational or physical, on or off the track, when he was giving Formula One the benefit of his talent as a talker and a daringly, sometimes careless, confrontational driver.
From the point of view of the grand prix coverage journalists like me, ‘Fast Eddie’ or ‘Irv the Swerve’ was a gift who rarely offered a dull moment — and he just did not care who he upset, niggled, needled, annoyed or irritated. Bless him!
Now, 15 years after he quit, he is at it again with typical candour.
He may have zoomed into the ranks of the mega-mega wealthy — said to be worth around £200 million (Dh915 million) — as a vast property tycoon commuting in a private jet or aboard his ocean-going yacht between his business HQ’s in the USA, Europe and the UK, but he has this week restored his ranting reputation.
I recall, with some amusement, Irvine’s 1993 Japan GP debut as a keen and eager and talented youngster. It was then that his attitude-to-come became clear: he rankled superstar Ayrton Senna to such fury that the Brazilian champion genius punched him! He went on to win four GPs and claim 26 podiums.
And, even now with the same honest-to-goodness stance, he won’t give a jot that he will have disturbed the feelings of his target’s worldwide mass of supporters and ardent admirers.
So who has Irvine shot down this time? No less a towering figure than four times world champion Sebastian Vettel, generally regarded and respected as heroic figure on the F1 battlefront — but disdainfully dismissed by outspoken Eddie.
Vettel, in China seeking a second win of the new season after his triumphant opener in Australia last time out, will, I am confident, have noted his severe critic’s condemnation of his ability and attitude, and dismissed it. Well, at least in public.
But here is a reminder. “He is a spoilt brat,” is Irvine’s reckoning of the 29-year-old German superstar.
And if that slight was not enough, the 51-year-old Irishman digs even deeper with: “And he is nowhere near as good as Michael Schumacher, even if he thinks so,” he told Motorsport-Total.com.
It does not stop there with Irvine in full flow and adding: “Vettel was already narcissistic when he first arrived on the Formula One scene — but the admiration surrounding him only prompted his arrogance to blossom.”
Irvine, who partnered Schumacher at Ferrari, pinpoints the German legend’s F1 outstanding record: 306 GPs, 91 wins, 155 podiums, 68 pole positions, 77 fastest laps and seven world titles. “He was just fantastic,” he goes on, “a truly great and gifted genius. It was my absolute pride and joy to work alongside him and see his ability at such close range.”
As Ferrari number one Vettel, seeking to underpin his revitalised title threat, hunts down his 44th win in Shanghai on Sunday, Irvine reminds him with another verbal dig in the ribs: “There is not even an argument. Sure, Vettel is a good driver, but Schuey was another level.
“He could do things with a car nobody, not Vettel, has ever been able to replicate, not even that superb driver and ex-champion Mikka Haakinen. In his day, Michael was easily dominant.
“Nowadays all the top drivers, Lewis Hamilton, Vettel and Fernando Alonso, possess similar skills, they are all the same. Michael was unique.”
One thing is certain: the next encounter between this frankly-speaking twosome will be a lively affair with a scarcity of plaudits being exchanged.
