This is indeed the way the sport ends, not with a bang but …. with a
whimper!
The decision has been made, Max has given in on the things that the TWG
couldn’t control anyway (Launch and traction control live on till the end of
the season) but won on the rest. No changes to qualifying, no refuelling or
set-up changes post qualifying session 2, something I can’t even say
without having a sneering italicisation. The changes stay and the fans, as I
suggested, stay away. 50,000 at San Marino for the race weekend (I think it
was 7 on the Friday and 11 – including 3 lost English tourists - on
Saturday). Not too bad, only 100,000 down on a few years ago. Oh, that’s
right, the tickets are too expensive, it’s not that the lead-up sessions are
boring. The tickets are indeed too expensive, but when you have a roadshow
like F1 to support and you have driven the fans into a state of catatonic
indifference you have to charge the few diehards who can’t play golf a
fortune to cover the costs. Given where it’s all heading I think they will
look back enviously at those huge crowds of 50,000.
Max is hinting that he may not stand for a 4th term after his current round
ends in 2005. Wise move Mr Mosley, although it’s not the age that’s the
problem, it’s the senility! You have managed to kill F1 (with Bernie’s
help of course) please don’t stay to give the eulogy.
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper.
T.S. ELIOT- 1925
To give you some idea of how ‘successful’ the rule changes have been,
based on Britains Sunday Times’ Rich List, F1’s commercial and media
rights have plunged in value by £2,000m to a paltry £800m in the space of 12
months. Of course this fall is also an impact of the rule changes that didn’t
happen, like aerodynamic and tyre property changes that would have enhanced
overtaking. Don’t spare too much sympathy for Bernie though, he still
manages 3rd place among the wealthy brits.
Trulli must have the same motivational trainer Ralf has used for the first
three races. His performance at San Marino was terrible even before he latched
onto the excuse of having to use the T car. Having said that, once again the
stupidity of the new rules raises its ugly head. How can a group (the FIA)
supposedly so focussed on safety claim that it is safer for a driver to use a
car set up for his team mate than to allow the set up of his own car to be
emulated? Of course it won’t matter in a few years when off the shelf
components and 5 year lifecycle engines are in place, the only set-up changes
needed then will be swap the seat insert (assuming that’s allowable
then).
Alonso should be dealt with severely for what can only be described as
dangerous driving in Brazil, but at least he’s fast.
Ralf heeded the wake-up call at Imola, anybody want odds that it was a
one-off and that he will be back to his old “15th on the grid is not bad
because my car didn’t feel right” ways pretty soon?
Intertechnique (the builders of those remarkable fuelling rigs) must be
getting a bonus from the FIA – They have managed to inject some interest
into what would otherwise be a procession. How can something that works fine
at the corner gas station without blowing up cars be made so complex that it
can disable multi million dollar racing machines with monotonous regularity?
And how can the FIA and the teams sit back and allow that to happen race after
race, year after year?
We are now one quarter of the way through the season and Pizzonia is
failing. Surprising given the rap Sir Frank gave him.
Firman and Wilson both need to lift their game and da Matta isn’t likely
to get the Rookie of the year by anything he did right, rather by the lack of
competition this year.
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Reader's
comments:
The rules are a farce - F1 used to be the pinnacle of motor engineering
until some prat decided that nailing a bit of wood underneath each car would
be a good idea! It's been downhill from there. The fans want to watch the
fastest cars driven by the fastest drivers and instead of constantly trying to
slow the cars down (I hear rumours of Reliant coming in with an engine deal
next year provided the FIA will agree to a three wheeler) control should be
handed back to the teams. If the teams want to stick a great big fan under the
car to suck it to the floor, fine - if they want to bolt a couple of turbos or
superchargers on the engine, fine - whatever they want to do, let them get on
with it. The drivers will decide how much speed they're prepared to use. The
FIA should be focussed on safety SYSTEMS (both on car and on track) and
keeping the sport competitive. Not deciding that the only way to safety is to
keep the cars slow (or is just to try to slow Ferrari down to the speed of the
rest?). To keep the sport competitive means saving the teams money - If
Minardi and Jordan had an engine that could survive several races they'd be in
a better position to develop speed instead of spending the budget replacing
engines because every last drop of performance has had to be squeezed out of a
technically limited package. If something doesn't change soon (and although I
doubt it will, lets hope that Max's departure from the sport will bring a sea
change of attitude) the sport will slowly die away. Hand control back to the
teams and lets see some innovation again! - Will - UK
Will,
While I sympathise with what you say I'm afraid we are seeing now the
results of control being in the hands of many. Giving it to the teams as a
group won't really resolve anything while you have each team putting its own
interest before the sport. Paul and Ron are very unlikely to agree on
anything, not that they ever did!
I think the sport needs a governing body - At the moment it has lots
of them (FIA, FOM, Teams, Committee's, sub-Committee's, sub-sub Com .... you
get what I mean). It needs one group comprising Team Principles, Driver
Representative, FOM style Representative and FIA representative - Equal
votes and simple majority rules! That body can then delegate authority over
various components to Working Groups but remains the absolute arbiter over
all decisions.
The Quali-flyer
Qualiflyer - you are spot on. I have followed your stuff ever since you
came on board. Loved the real race. Now it's a pitiful shambles. The new rules
are hopeless and ridiculous and don't help safety either. Bernie and Max
should be ashamed as you say. The team bosses (and drivers) should be ashamed
for not having the guts to stand up and say the rules are crap.
Keep up the good contentious stuff - more entertaining than anything else that
happens before 2pm Sundays anyway... Cheers, Stephen - Australia
Thanks for the support Stephen, it's nice to know someone is
listening, even if it's not Max. Bernie seems to have seen the light on
qualifying but that's too little, too late.
At least he (Max) is contemplating retirement, it can't come soon
enough for me. If I overstay my welcome the way he has, please shoot me -
The Quali-flyer.
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