FORUMula1.com - F1 Forum

[Mr.Conte]

I tend to agree with Ferrari that something needs to change and that could be a breakaway series.
F1 is no longer the supreme motor sport with technology being the driver.
It has become a political toy with people who have no interest in it's well being calling the shots.
If the major teams pull out and start a new series, I am sure the fans and TV would follow.
Don't underestimate the savy of the fans throughout the world.
The drivers are not happy and the heart an soul of the sport; the factory teams are not happy.
This is not a privateer sport as some would want to believe it should be.
It is about automotive technology at it's best condensed into a single car that factories believe can win and sell their products for them.
Drivers make a handsome living in this sport without even winning a race.
The F1 concept is a good one that has been played around with for sometime now and it has gotten worse because of it.
I have no interest in seeing back marker cars run around a course trying to sell products while endangering others due to not being competitive.
"If you want in on the dance, learn to dance first"
If the 2013 rules apply, it will be the death of a sport that was once known as the greatest motor sport in the world.

[myownalias]

I disagree; in particularly about F1 not being a privateer sport; back in the 80s and 90s when F1 was at it's best in my opinion, privateer teams were the majority, even now the majority of teams are privateer teams, only Mercedes, Ferrari and Renault/Lotus remain, the likes of Toyota, Honda, Renault and BMW all jumped on the bandwagon in the 2000's. Also just because smaller engines are used, that doesn't limit innovation, it encourages it as innovation is what is needed to get the best out of the new specification. You make a lot of assumptions about what teams really want and what the general F1 fan wants from the sport. The only team that has openly spoken out against the new 2013 regulations is Ferrari, an off the cuff comment from Norbert Haug saying "we should extend the V8 era" does not count as speaking out, Mercedes GP has not officially spoken against the new L4 turbo formula. As for what the fans will do; nobody knows, sure if Ferrari leave and create a breakaway, the Tifosi will no doubt follow Ferrari but F1 is a growing sport with fans of lots of teams, the truth is we do not know what people will do!

[Jensonb]

In a word. No.

I'm sick of Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes, Renault (Remember that one?) or whoever else or group of them or WHATEVER trying to rip the sport apart every two or three years.

[scotty]

This argument is sooooo 2009

This is not a privateer sport as some would want to believe it should be.

History disagrees with you. Look at the last two championships for starters. Going back from there, i guess it depends on whether you class McLaren and Ferrari as true manufacturers or not - an argument for another time and place - but i don't think you can in this context because they both still prioritise and have the vast majority of their legacy based on racing.

The simple fact is that F1 cannot start pandering to the needs of Manufacturers who have shown that they would just bail (BMW, Toyota, Renault) when the going gets tough, because we could easily have a situation whereby half the grid is suddenly lost in one fell swoop - and that would be the beginning of the end of that motorsport category.

[zurich_allan]

Agreeing with the majority here I'm afraid - privateers have always been the heart of F1 - always. The large manufacturers have historically always come in for periods when successful, then left the sport, drivers, engineers and other staff in the lurch if their fortunes have dipped for a year or two.

Don't get me wrong - I like some of the bigger teams, Mercedes seem a well organised and balanced setup to me, and the sport of course would not be the same without Ferrari, however look at the sheer volume of F1 history that goes with teams like Williams, (original) Team Lotus, Benetton, Tyrrell. For fans of the sport it's not just the winning privateers that matter either - think of Jordan, Minardi, Zakspeed etc.

A good balance between both privateer and manufacturer is what is necessary in F1, and the only way to maintain a reasonable hold on agreed budgets, and balance between things being done for the good of the racing and for the good of the manufacturers' sponsors etc.

There's nothing wrong with the current mix of teams in F1 - in fact I think the introduction of the newer, smaller teams into F1 last year was a shot in the arm it had long since needed. I really enjoy following the battles lower down the pecking order, not just the ones at the front.

[F1er]

The problem with car Manufacturers such as Honda,Toyota etc is that once the shareholders see that money is being lost,they pull the plug!

[JackMaster]

I believe that things are changing. Many of the strange things made in F1 along the past years had a purpose. I’m talking about:
• Extreme cost cutting
• Strange changes of rules, like S.C. Lottery
• Focusing cars development in aero
• Banning of the motor evolution during the season
• Brawn GP car
• Force India unbelievable performance in a race in 2009
• New small and inefficient teams
Bernie and Mosley wanted to keep control on F1, they didn’t want strong teams to be in a position of breakaway threatening. The last set of rules prepared for Max Mosley was the last straw. They tried to put Ferrari and McLaren at the same position, with the same budget, than the rest of the teams. The teams firmly opposed and they failed. Mosley was out and Todt in.
Ferrari’s breakaway threatening has been the first shot of a battle for controlling F1. With Jean Todt in FIA, the teams are gonna play their cards from know to the 2012 end, when they have to sign a new agreement with the F1 owners.
I don’t believe that the breakaway is going to take place, but teams will take control of F1, as they are doing know. The 2011 and 2013 rules are in general what the teams want. No more interference of Bernie and Mosley in the rules changes in F1, in my opinion.
And that will attract new and old car manufactures to F1.

[Mr.Conte]

Many, many of us who have been fans since the 70s love this avenue of motor sport because of the technical breakthroughs coupled with great drivers.
Restrictions in engine development, ground effects, etc. are nothing more than attempts to equalize the worst from the best.
Why penalize teams who have carried the sport for so many years just to draw in potential wannabes who have not paid their dues?
Find me one person who does not like the sound of V 10s or 12s screaming down long straights who attends F1.
I as well as many others do not relish listening to muffled whines of turbo 4 cylinder motors that are not rooted in the direction of automotive superiority that is F1.
This whole thing to me smells of the ills of gambling's long arm again trying to tighten things so people can make more money from betting.
It's always about the almighty dollar people, always.
I stand by my statement and regardless of what some of you say about privateers, and I respect your position, those so called privateers flourished for a while when rules restrictions were much less and innovation reigned supreme.
Give me 4 teams who develop programs to the max and then take it to the track anytime over 16 teams where half of them are buying last season's technology and race because of someone's ego and oversized wallet.
F1 is supposed to be the ultimate; currently, it is not.
I suspect that after the public starts getting bored and TV revenue drops they will relax the ruling and bring back F1 to what it was always intended to be.