There really is a Nascar flavor in F1 now. All the gimmicks are brutal. It eventually killed Nascar, and they haven't learned to revert back to a time where it was about hard racing for a full season and a Champion was deserving of the title. A glimpse into future Formula 1.
The moment that the penalty is known by Sainz is one of the saddest of all times. Here, the transcript “ No, it canotbi, riki. No, no is anaceptabol Tel dem it is anaceptabol dei nid to bueit antil de reis is finis and discás buizmí No plis plis plis plis plis tu gueit tu gueit and discas buiz mi Cliarli the penali is not diserf is tu sivier Tweet— Twitter API (@user) date
I agree that Bernie should not have sold F1 to a media company. But his hand was forced by those greedy blood sucking Venture Capitalists. He shouldn't have let CVC get their position in the first place. It was possibly Bernie's first and last duff deal.
Were there alternatives to Liberty ? The FIA that surrendered the commercial rights, should have kept some say in the way F1 is structured. It seems that nothing is sacred and everything is sacrificed to the benefit of a US entertainment company.
So to recap -- nobody involved was American, including the CEO of Liberty, but because y'all don't like the results it's "been Americanized." Sounders like the Euros ****ed this one up themselves.
Where the safety car came from ? Where artificially "bunching up the field" is common practice ? Where is racing timing subjected to TV schedules ? Where is the notion of entertainment paramount in sports ? All these were introduced to F1 over the years. I didn't make it up.
Liberty bought media rights in 2018. The safety car (bunching up) was introduced to F1 in 1993 The race time limit (entertainment over sport) was introduced in 2012. Let's not forget things like so many qualifying changes over the years, including single lap. All changes made before 2018, all designed to increase fan entertainment. F1 races have -always- been cognizant of TV times since they were first televised.
Saw a quote in Italian on Twitter today, attributed to Ecclestone: “I left them a star-rated restaurant and they’ve turned it into a McDonald’s.”
Why are you so defensive ? Did I touch a raw nerve ? I didn't say that Liberty introduced all the changes, but since they came, the way they want to steer F1 becomes obvious. The number of races has increased to reach 23 this year, but Liberty admit they wish for 25 races. Now they are dabbling with the idea of reducing practice sessions to have more sprint races instead. It seems Liberty wants F1 to become NASCAR2, where commercial priorities take precedence over the interest of the sport. The entertainment notion won't last long among F1 followers if they find that race results are manipulated.
I don't like people who bash Americans for being Americans, and blaming everything they don't like on Americans -- especially when none are involved. Australia was a cluster****, lay the blame where it belongs.
Try to think rationally, and not emotionally. The overall control of F1 operations is Liberty, an American company, even if its employees are not. Australia was just an example of the way F1 has been turned on its head in recent years. The rot started well before. "Americanizing" F1 is a mistake, and it makes it more vulnerable long term, IMO.
We have a difference of interpretation here. Some want F1 to become another glorified Hollywood show, others would like it to stay pure motor racing. When you take the soul out of Grand Prix to make it solely an entertaining TV series, you destroy the sport. The US influence cannot be denied in the direction F1 is taking. You may like it, but others don't, so you can expect some resistance. Your opinion could change if European influence came to your cheriched institutions. What would you say if an European company took over the NFL or baseball, and started changing the existing rules?
Absolutely true. Only difference is they want people pay the same money as a star rated restaurant ( or even more ..)
I think the results, bogus challengers to Verstappen (or whoever is the chosen one), fan numbers, ticket prices, conflicts and disagreements within and to other teams, race wins, qualifying are all manipulated & encouraged to spice up the show. Once we get used to the format, we can be pretty sure of predicting the results. You forgot to mention team orders too and their concern for the fans which is laughable, especially when they manipulate who will win. Now you mention it, it does seem like a NASCAR. Who else would watch a bunch of cars parade around the track in single file.
don't forget the radio messages...deliberately playing only select radio messages in order to create controversy, with half the context. ALL drivers are victim of this