That last sentence, to me, is the main reason Bernie needs to go away.....at least 15 years ago. Ecclestone frustrated by Formula 1 spending (gpupdate.net)
Not a Bernie fan, but there is definitely truth in that statement. All major sports are nothing but entertainment IMHO.
You can have an entertaining series and good racing. Look at WC last year. Unfortunately it won't be on TV for most people this year.
2015 F1 drivers helmets in pictures - F1 Fanatic Some nice designs in there, but also the usual sponsor laden visual barf. I especially like Valtteri Bottas'. But for sleek, classic looks, both the Sauber boys win. Marcus Ericcson Filipe Nasr
Yup, and good racing is entertaining, no doubt about it. The question is, which comes first? What's important about a racing series? It has to be viable and when excessively large budgets are required to keep it going that means it has to be entertaining enough to bring in revenue. But you don't need to make money hand over fist to fill pockets of people who aren't involved in either the racing or the show. Bernie now thinks of it as a show that exists -- not just first and foremost but entirely -- to make BIG money for people who are already rich. To him, it's an entertainment show. Entertainment he can sell to the highest bidder(s). The racing itself (and the tech, the rules, and the "glamorous ladies") is only important insofar as it improves the dollar value of his traveling show. There's no doubt in my mind that if he had his way he'd be able to decide who gets to win each race as well. Maybe this isn't commercially viable anymore (and it certainly won't happen while the 'show' is owned by money grubbing investors) but I wish they'd put someone in charge who thought of the entertainment side of the sport as nothing more than a way to keep the series interesting to fans and participants, and funded and running.
Shouldn't it be the goal to return the most profit to your biggest investors, no matter what business you are in? I actually suspect that Bernie has a slightly different motive here. I think he also wants to have control of the hospitality component of the race weekend and make money from it.
When they bought in, those investors weren't interested in F1 other than as a tool to increase profit-taking. Bernie sold out because by then he, also, was only in it for the money. Since then things have been exactly as you suggest. There are investors in charge and it is absolutely Bernie's job to make them rich(er). But when Bernie sold out, F1 didn't need their investment. Bernie wanted it. Naive Steve over here wants what he can't have. I admit it! I want it to be about racing and its trappings. If people find they can make money racing or selling food or souvenirs or broadcasting the races or anything else that goes with the racing, that's fine. But when the guy who's in charge of promoting the series and making it grow decides no aspect of the racing is more important than his bottom line and the amount of money he can extract, I want him replaced. Investor owners who don't care about racing for the sake of racing will never fire a Bernie. The series is a business. Fine. That's a good thing. Someone needs to think of it that way and do things to make it grow or, bare minimum, keep it stable/viable. But put the profit back into the business. If they did that there would be plenty of cash to work with and the racing could be allowed to be the main focus even to the extent of (and I know this is blasphemy to money grubbers) making decisions and changes that improve the sporting side without them needing to also improve an investor's perception of the entertainment value and despite occasional adverse effects to the bottom line. In my opinion, Bernie doesn't care one iota about whether racers and racing enthusiasts enjoy F1 and he's not interested in finding a balance between that and increasing extractable profits.....unless it will increase extractable profits.
Business is about making money for your investors. But if you sacrifice the product and alienate your market there won't be a business for the investors to make money on.
This seems especially stupid. I mean the situation. BBC Sport - Sauber driver Giedo van der Garde wins court case to claim race seat
Yup. I've been trying to ignore this cluster-F. It's actually even worse for Sauber. Sutil also says he has a claim. He went to court before VDG and went after cash so speculation is that's why VDG went after the race seat. Some say there are actually four Sauber drivers with legal contracts.....
I'm not sure, yet, but I think I might like this idea. Of course it may be just because I wish aero wasn't such a dominant factor in making F1 cars fast. Banning wind tunnels wouldn't change that entirely because they would shoot for the same effects via CFD. Still, maybe aero would become slightly less of a factor? Sure sounds like it would make things cheaper. F1: Horner suggests F1 wind tunnel ban (racer.com)
Oh, brother. VDG won his case against Sauber who were told they can't stop him from driving. Sauber lost their appeal. Essentially, Sauber are now forced to choose which contract to violate. I can't imagine how deluded VDG must be. Does he think the team will now welcome him with open arms? VDG: "The car isn't working well." Team radio: "So sue us."
I was wondering the same thing. I'd be amused if when he pulls into the pit, that the crew just sits there, finishes their coffee, and casually wanders over to ask what he wants.
In other news, Manor (lately Marussia) is going to be at the GP this weekend. The'll be racing an updated 2014 chassis, and introduce a proper new car later this year. Manor F1 car appears in Australia - F1 Fanatic
Yeah, looks like he probably won't be able to race this weekend. Does Van der Garde have a F1 super licence? | GRAND PRIX 247
Joe pretty sums up the situation. F1 limps into new season March 12, 2015 by Joe Saward F1 goes into Friday in Melbourne limping, having (once again) successfully shot itself in the foot. It seems that the sport is incapable of producing a positive news story when one is required. On the first day of the new season, we should be seeing comments about how Nico and Lewis are going to go stick it one another again this year. Fans want action and character. They want conflict. They want bread and circuses. Mercedes need to provide that. They know that. Their car is good, probably great. The opposition is not going as well. So what we want is Nico Rosberg saying: “Lewis, I’m going to beat you” and Lewis saying: “Yeah, yeah, bring it on.” It would be good to see Lewis wearing a cowboy hat and a blanket with some spaghetti western music twanging away as he walks into the paddock. It would be good to see Nico (in the black hat) squinting into the sunlight, looking nervous. A little theatre would not hurt anyone. Instead we have Lewis in serious introvert mode, shrugging at questions that involve any tiptoeing. Come on boys, give us a show! We need to paint the picture of F1 in 2015 and our paintbrushes are ready, but if you don’t give us some paint, there is not much we can do. The other great positive story this weekend is the survival of Manor Marussia. It shows all that is good in F1. A doomed team surviving thanks to ingenuity, grit, effort and the bulldog spirit. Instead we are all focussed on the ridiculous Van der Garde-Sauber kerfuffle, which is packed full of negatives. https://joesaward.wordpress.com/