... But seriously Why there aren't any american drivers in F1

It's because we can't drive worth a $*&@

 

We prefer driving in circles for 8 hours

 

Exactly

What is this with tying nationality to motorsport? ... the driver does not give a fnck he is doing it for himself ... nobody else.

Pete
ps: Go Mark go ... you fast Aussie you

 

We will have a driver in the next 2 or 3 years and maybe even a team. It is very possible.

 

Why? Miss America: The path to F1 is in Europe. We miss America when we're away.

Most Americans don't want to hang out in Europe, hat in hand, trying to get a ride in the one series that some Yanks have heard of, when there are tons of racing venues back where you can get a decent burger and shake.

Besides, Yanks fit in NASCAR machines. That's not just obesity -- although there's plenty in the general population, less among racers. The problem is that even without growing out, lots of Yanks have been just growing, over the decades.

The US has a massive calorie intake, relative to most of the world. (It's always struck me as odd that, while we're paying farmers to not grow things, and throwing away surplus, there are nations all over the world that prohibit us exporting food to them to level the trade balance. (Alas, the regions that most need food imports have nothing to send in return -- and tend to need food shipments to be accompanied by a heavily armed military escort.))

With exercise, that large food intake doesn't all turn to fat -- but it does build larger bodies. I visited the USS Constitution ("Old Ironsides") a few years back. Sailors of the 17th and 18th Century were midgets compared to Yanks today. A 200cm plus Yank isn't at all rare, today.

And the margins in F1 are slim (no pun intended). Was it Wurz that was passed over to take Montoya's place, because they couldn't adapt the car to fit him? Even Webber has trouble getting in and out of his F1 car. Eddie Cheever lost his ride with Alfa, back in the day, when the FIA updated the emergency egress rules, and Alfa couldn't adapt the car to let Eddie get out fast enough to meet the requirements.

This may be cyclic. I've noticed that the younger generation has been getting shorter again (as well as wider).

But we Yanks are being wary of Jacques and his beanstalk.

But notice that Eddie, during his Alfa days, while a US passport holder, was a resident of Monaco.

This may be less of a problem as tobacco ads drive F1 out to non-European settings. When F1 was mostly in Europe, it was far harder for a Yank driver to get home for the weekend than for European drivers. All that extra travel takes a toll -- just ask the South American drivers.

We're not alone. Take a look at the traffic in the D.C. area some time. Or in New Delhi -- yet India has a driver. It doesn't matter whether the general population are racers -- it only takes one to make it to the show.

But US racers with the experience and talent to make it in F1 don't need to put up with the travel, the condescension, and the media circus associated with F1 in order to race. And F1 gets virtually no press coverage in the 'States, compared to domestic events.

In other words: What's in it for the driver?

 

I'm not convinced that it is a height issue, otherwise F1 would be dominated by the Japanese.
I think the fact that F1 is still a European based series is what puts some US drivers off. When Michael Andretti drove for McLaren he commuted from the US and his results were poor. I assume he is a decent driver as he has done well in the US, but he just didn't seem to commit himself fully to F1.
Until F1 is better known and respected in the US then US drivers will aim for their domestic series.

 

Japanese drivers have the same issue: They don't need to go overseas to race. There are plenty of events at home.

 

Scott Speed?

 

If Bernie Ecclestone really wanted an American in F-1, he would have made it happen already. Ecclestone certainly sees the value in marketing in the US with the Indianapolis GP and another USGP venue said to be in the works. But, the only way to make this truely successful will be to have a top American driver in F-1.

Ecclestone should have bent over backwards to have Jeff Gordon get into F-1 this year. Imagine the explosion of interest in F-1 in the US had Gordon made the jump.

The only problem becomes when certain drivers reach the level of which a Jeff Gordon has in NASCAR, they make far more money selling their t-shirts and trinkets than they do driving. So, what is the motovation to change?

To a lesser degree, there are no Americans driving for Audi in the ALMS which dosent make sense either. If Audi is marketing to America, it only makes sense that an American driver would be in the mix which would create huge
interest.

To say that there are no good American drivers is pure nonsense. There is a European perception that Americans are all stock car drivers but there are talented young American drivers such as Jason Workman who are itching for a chance with a top sports car or open wheeled team if only they're given the chance.

BHW

 

Probably and some others too!

 

Simple, really.

F1 is irrelevant in America.

Here F1 is an oddball series that comes on at 3 AM on an obscure cable network. It's no more important than CASCAR or ARCA or any other feeder series. Except for a handful of fanatics, people don't watch F1.

Why should an American driver want to run in that series?

There's NASCAR and IRL for closed wheel and open wheel, respectively. ALMS for closed wheel road courses. Running any of these series will generate more personal fame and fortune in America than running F1.

The old rule that "F1 is the ultimate racing series" went by the wayside long ago, when Minardi and other backmarkers started selling driver seats.

If you want American drivers to care, create more races on this side of the world (3 in US, 1 in Canada, 1 in Mexico, 1 in Brazil seems about right), start broadcasting the races in prime time here (CBS is starting to do that again), and make a racing seat in F1 something that must be earned, not something that a big enough checkbook can buy

 

No sire. It still is. Teams like Minardi have a valuable function as entry ticket to the big league, but that doesn't diminish the big players one bit.

Don't confuse oval nonsense with real racing.

 

Drivers seats have always been for sale in F1. The usual route for an F1 team was to have one pay driver and one paid driver. The aim for the pay driver was to prove his worth so he could make a living driving. Enzo accepted payments from many 'gentleman racers' in order to subsidise his race team. There are probably less pay drivers in F1 now than there have ever been. Mr Schumacher (or his manager) paid Eddie Jordan when he made his F1 debut.
Without Minardi the current F1 Championship leader might not even be in F1.

 

All true and don't forget that even a paying driver has to get a super licence first. And that is still nothing to sneeze at. The 40+ old Minardi test driver sounds like a joke (and it probably is), but that doesn't mean that guy will ever be allowed to join a real GP.

Also even the "bottom feeders" of F1 drivers normally end up with a nice job at lesser series, many of them in the US.

Don't get me wrong, oval racing etc is cool stuff and real racing, but F1 is the pinnacle. Political bickering or not.

 

Scott Speed may be in an F1 car at Imola!

Red Bull is going to give test driver Tonio Liuzzi three races in Klien's seat, but Klien is not eligible to replace Liuzzi in the third car on Friday, so there is a possibility that Speed will be in the third car for the next three GP meetings.

 

You just made my day!

At least the "obscure" network carries that practice. I'm more afraid of what CBS will do with the tape delayed race. If Tiger Woods drops a golf ball that day, we might never get to see it...

 

There are several Americans in F1 now; Barrichello, Montoya and Villeneuve come to mind. None from the USA though.

 

Somehow I knew you'd say that. Don't forget Massa btw.

 

With Masa American has 4 F1 drivers. That's 1/5 of the current F1 drivers on the grid each race!

 

I just read a German article about it and it confirms what you're saying. The only alternate to Speed would be the Swiss driver Jani, but he was a lot slower in the tests last week than Speed was. So to me it looks like a done deal.

Now imagine Scott Speed in the practice session at the USGP and what that would do for the attendance. If Liuzzi and Klien continue doing 3 stints at a time in the cockpit, it would just work out for Scott to be back for the USGP.

 

There are many reasons why there are no Americans in F1 and money is a big part of it. I mean why would a driver go to a lower tier team and wrestle a pig for 2 hours and have to pay to do it when you could go to champ car or the IRL or Nascar, get a car that's halfway decent and do well? Probably get paid in the process too. It's faster and easier, relatively speaking to make a career in racing in the states and you actually have a chance to pass a leader on the track not in the pits like in F1. Has there even been an on track pass for the lead this year? Basically if you don't get pole you're screwed. There are many American drivers that can get the job done in F1 but the lure of American racing and it's many options and level playing field is too great. I'd rather get a good car in the states and make a name for myself fast than pay my dues in F1 and end up in cars never quite good enough to win and be called a wanker and cast aside.

 

It really has nothing to do with the PEOPLE as much as it does the community and the size of the sport. Scott has done incredibly and has made quite a name for himself in American racing, but it's not only Americans who race in our series, just as some Americans race in Euro series. Take a look at the list of drivers racing F Renault US, there is a large portion from our country, but there are even more who have traveled here to participate in our races. There is (generaly) much more competitive racing in Europe, which is why almost all of the top drivers in most series have gone through racing in Europe. As proven by Scott and many others, an American can be better than Europeans, a lot of Europeans, but there will almost always be MORE skilled/tallented drivers coming from across the pond. Even series like Indy and CART are starting to host a large number of European drivers, and those are known as American series.

It's not that Europeans are better, it's just that there are more of them and they're used to the cut-neck competition in their high-level racing series.

With all of that being said, I can't wait to see Speed get in the seat for Red
Bull and kick some Euro ass.

 

Won't happen.
If they continue doing 3 stints at a time..
Liuzzi: Imola, Spain, Monaco
Klien: European gp, Canada, US

Maybe Liuzzi will give his place to Scott Speed for this special occasion. (Speed home GP)
Marketing issue..