Steve read this: Bahrain is set to win a place on the board of the new company controlling Formula 1, while one of the sport's biggest investors, Mercedes, could be forced out of the sport. Full story: the Times (subscription required) via -http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/gossip/ I certainly hope that is not true. I have some contacts here in Stuttgart I should inquire with.
Its a non-story relating to pre-float/pre-Concorde posturing extrapolated according to Joe Saward http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2012/05/07/silly-stories/
+1 Could argue this one both ways; - Why should they get a seat on the board? They're a Johnny-come-lately and haven't won a title. If they get a seat, why not Force India? STR? And the others? - OTOH, they supply 25% of the motive power and pulling out would leave a lot of teams powerless. Much behind the scenes activity before the floatation I think. [There's a surprise, huh!?] Cheers, Ian
Mercedes is a Johnny come lately??? Would we say this about Ferrari if they fielded a Lemans car in 2015?
I'm saying nothing lol. There was one very minority stakes member of the board a month or so ago who mentioned pulling out of F1 and then they won their first race and everyone shut up.
Johnny come lately? Mercedes? They have been in F1 continuously for the past 18 years. Don't forget they were a (large) part-owner of McLaren Mercedes before they bought a stake in Brawn and turned it into Mercedes F1. And their history before that is pretty impressive as well. They are one of the largest participants in Formula 1 and are most definitely amongst the top contributors to the sport, and have been over the years.
+1, they have invested over a billion $ in F1. Merc has a lot of muscle, if I was Bernie I would tread lightly on this one. Not sure why he would be stubborn and not give them a board seat. This isn't HRT...
Thanks D. Yes I like his blog, don't always agree with him, don't forget he needs a pit pass.. From his blog : One might argue that Mercedes-Benz is not an F1 brand like Ferrari, Williams or McLaren, but it is a motor racing brand that pre-dates all of them. In fact it is 111 years since the first Mercedes won a motor race, long before the other teams existed. That first victory was in a Nice-Salon-Nice race of 1901 when Wilhelm Werner, Baron Henri de Rothschilds mechanic, outran the opposition over 250 miles.
OK, I should have prefaced my comments with "the modern era"..... Not even I'm old enough to remember their exploits around WW11. IMO, yes. Sure, they've been supplying engines for many years but the team is a newbie. I've got nothing but admiration for them sticking around when many other manfacturers have come & gone. BUT, in the context of this discussion (board seats in the soon to be publicly traded F1) I don't see why they should get a seat and not some of the others. While the noise from their board has quietened down for the moment they could pull out at any time and that's why they're not being invited IMO. The *only* guys guaranteed to be in F1 forever are Ferrari & Mclaren. There's the history & legacy of the modern era - I'm sorry, but it's not Mercedes. If they want to stomp their feet about it, fine, but then Renault should be there too. If Renault, then why not Cosworth etc? Ferrari should be there because, well, they *are* F1 - No Ferrari, no show. Mclaren are second and F1 is pretty much all they do [OK, I know there's MES and the road cars, but you get my point.] Mercs' been a long term engine supplier, and that's great, but a "cornerstone" of the modern sport? Not to me at least. When they've got the same # of titles as the big two, then they can whine about not getting a seat....... Cheers, Ian
Nope. FWIW, I don't understand why they should be getting a seat either...... Sure, they're at the top of their game right now and have a couple of titles but so what? If Mr M ever gets bored with it, they'll be gone too. Cheers, Ian
+1 I think you're probably spot on right there..... Just because they're currently on top(ish ) shouldn't be buying them any more clout than any of the others - With the exception of the big two already discussed. Unless, and this remains to be worked out of course, they do something like a rotating seat that goes to the current WCC every year. Cheers, Ian
Agreed, and I like the rotating seat idea, how about one for the WCC and WDC? Ferrari would be all over themselves to win both of those and have 3 seats for a year!
A-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y! Much posturing & chest thumping going on right now for sure. It'll all come out in the wash - Which may be *very* enlightening. Dunno why they're floating in Singapore? [Stricter privacy laws maybe? If that were the case I'd have thought Lichenstein or similar?] Cheers, Ian
But if we buy a share, they've gotta send us at least the annual report, right? Or do you think "we" won't get an opportunity to buy? Cheers, Ian
" The law, like the Ritz hotel, is open to both the rich and the poor" Anon. Don't know why that quote comes to mind.
Seems like a crock of **** to me, I don't think there was ever a dispute to begin with. The Times reported it originally...oh wow, credible source there. This Benoit fellow seems to have a disdain for MBZ and MS so I take what he says with a grain of salt.
