The whole idea of Scott Speed, was to gain a larger American audience for F1. That is very much in Bernie's interest. He could easily have done some general promotion, I think, involving Scott for the US audience. You hear and see ads all the time that are regional in scope, and that would have been no different.

 

Any change to qualifying including reversing the order, and rewarding points for how you qualify, would certainly make for some odd strategies for trailing drivers and teams as the season came to an end. I'm not sure making the rules more complex, especially in this area, is an answer to gaining a wider, much less more American, audience. Current qualifying is chaotic enough, thankya.


If their aim really is to get American audiences, the one surefire way to do this would be to work out something where the cars can compete at Indianapolis against the American drivers in general. I believe that this worked out for them in the 60's. It at least changed the American cars. I know this would require changes to at least one if not both of the formulas, but what better time to change the Indy formula anyway?

and ++ on flat bottomed cars. I don't think that current underbody development is advancing automotive engineering that we benefit from, and it is driving up the cost of the sport. The wings may be doing the same thing, but I really don't wanna see the cars zinging off the track like rockets, either.

 

Not a Massa fan, eh?

 

How about going back to when you could drop your worst two races or whatever it was back whenever?

 

But that was a Red Bull promotion, not a Bernie thing.
The current Concord agreement has an 18 race limit, which Bernie has filled without the US. I believe the regional ads are by the individual race promoters who have an interest in increased sales. Not Bernie, he's already got his money.

 

That doesn't stop Bernie for doing promo if he chooses to.

 

And then every other driver and team could whine about favoritism. As diverse as America is, most people can identify with more than one driver. I liked Speed, too (although, damn, he can't drive a NASCAR!), but Red Bull was his undoing, not Bernie.

 

I never said Bernie was Scott's undoing.

You know, it's so easy. You do regional promotions all over. Spotlight the local drivers... no mention has to be made of the team.

"This Sunday at the US Grand Prix, follow American Scott Speed in his quest for the points!"

or

¡"Este el domingo en el Prix Grande España, sigue Fernando Alonso en su búsqueda para los puntos"!

 

Here's the latest on Mosley's mess:

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/080403/2/zvax.html

And on the spoiled one:

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/030420...ault-exit.html

I sure hope Ferrari has more sense than to bite...

 

I read about Alonso on the BBC.

It's not a question of Ferrari biting. The president of the company has said on more than one occasion, that he wants Fred. I would make a strong guess that Fred already has a promise from Ferrari, which is why he got a one year deal from Renault.

 

Mosley does have himself quite a mess. I like his "yeah, well you're a bunch of *****, too!" comment to BMW and Mercedes. And kudos to the Crowned Prince for asking him to not attend the race.

 

A few days ago (just before the Mosley debacle) I was thinking about how we're all putting down Bernie now and just a couple years ago everyone was talking about how evil Max was and saying he ought to step down for the good of the sport.....

 

Never having been a fan of Mad Max, I'm enjoying his death throes immensely.

Sic semper tyrannus!!

This beats last season's finale, IMHO.

 

Not me. I've wanted them BOTH out of the sport for years.

 

I know what you mean. I guess I was trying to say something about how cyclical this sort of thing is, at least in terms of press. Hate Bernie.....ok, now hate Max.....ok, now it's Shumi's turn.....oops, Max's turn again.....etc.....

 

Kubica for BMW on pole in Bahrain!!!

 

I knew he could do it -- go Bob!!!

 

Geez, you know this scandal with Herr Max is getting out of hand, when Time magazine picks up on it!

http://www.time.com/time/world/artic...0.html?cnn=yes

 

I can't remember the thinking behind that . . . although it was a "would" more than a "could" each driver had to drop a result from each half of the season.

Must've been something to level the playing ground from the bigger teams to the smaller privateers . . . but if someone remembers more specifically I'd love the education.

Anyway, I will always prefer the old points system, dropped results or not.

 

Looks like I've got a better than even chance of making the GP at Spa this year. Thought I'd ask to see if anyone on the board had been to the GP there and if so . . . do you have any good hotel recs? Any advice?

Access in/out of the circuit, etc. That sort of stuff

Thanks

 

I'm very jealous!

I'm still thinking about going to one this year but haven't decided where.....though Spa is well up the list.....

 

I've put a lot of thought into this and I really don't think it has anything to do with stacking Dale Jr. against Fernando Alonso. I simply think that in the US motorsport is and always will be a niche sport.

Big events like NASCAR, the INDY 500, etc. confuse the issue and benefit from a host of marketing/sponsor/corporate events that draw tens of thousands bored Americans just looking for an excuse to get out of the house. Sorry folks but I just don't believe there are 400,000 die hard fans at most of these events. Many are there to soak in the sun, drink a half dozen cold beers, and check out the scenery.

I'll get slammed for this . . . but IMHO there simply is no explanation for the success of NASCAR from an old fashioned "enthusiasts" perspective.

Mario Andretti could not raise F1's commercial stakes in the US . . . and poor Scott Speed, despite having an opportunity most of us only dream about, was nothing more than the token American. I feel like Scott was used . . . certainly if Red Bull championed his rise into the sport they should've given him better support once he arrived.

Anyway, I don't want to see Tony Stewart in an F1 car . . . even if they found a big enough shoe horn.

 

I don't disagree with most of this. I'll counter that most sports really are a niche sport. Marketing, and a bunch of trends outside of the control of the sport have made the difference. For example, the changing social mores about violence probably have more to do with the decline of boxing rather than the performance of Don King's fighters.

Agreed, as well. I know that market is probably the FIA's aim. I hope they don't accomplish it through the same means. NASCAR became a meaningless racing series in the late 70's/early 80's. I don't really think that the changes in rules that I dislike have anything to do with it either. It is marketing and image. I hate both, and hate to think about them.

I dunno, F1 was more visible in the US when Andretti raced, when I was a kid in the 70's, I remember watching the races on broadcast TV, and getting random F1 gifts from relatives. Having truly great drivers that happened to be American, driving, and competitive certainly helped. But, driver cross pollination was not my aim in getting the two series able to compete with each other.

As a kid, I knew who A.J. Foyt, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda and Mario Andretti were. I also knew the name Jim Clark. I doubt my nephew knows who Michael Schumacher is. The main difference between these drivers is that three drove cars with Ford engines, and one beat them a lot. Constructors come with money and input. None of the American ones really are in a position to go throwing tons of money around, much less at Fomula 1. But, if a Ferrarri or a Renault won Indianapolis, they might at least notice and start working on F1. If they started winning F1 races, they might start putting money into advertising about it.

 

I tend to be too cynical for my own good . . . and often reveal my foolishness when I open my mouth . . .

I do think F1 really does quite well in the US . . . there are certainly a number of very passionate followers of the sport.

 

20 races next year, bank on it...........

I'm planning to go to both Silverstone for the F1 and Goodwood a week after in 2009. It will be a significant milestone type of birthday for me that summer, and the bride wants to use it as an excuse to travel big, and since a car event would have to figure for it to happen at all - those are our choices!

Should be fun........

Now.

Spoiler Alert!












Ferrari 1-2!

Massa wins, Kimi comes a strong second, BMWs third and 4th and Kovi 5th for Big Mac.

Won't be long now before BMW is on the top step.........

BMW leading the constructors points over Ferrari by 1

Kimi leading the driver's championship now..........