GANASSI CONSIDERS F1 MOVE.....

JPM remarking to a Williams mechanic as he stares at Gordon's car: "Manny, kill dis peece of chit'"

 

I don't get it.

 

Congratulations on converting your wife. Now if I can get the guys in my office to convert so the Monday conversations do not start with "did you see little e..."

I hope Ganassi can do it. Maybe the U.S. could get 2 grand prix in the future with more American involvment. Germany and Italy (although not technically) get 2 each. I almost feel left out.

 

Oh, I see. Tells you something about the level of sophistication this "sport" brings with it.

formula1joe, I agree with you. There shouldn't be two German and Italian GPs, it is unfair. And soon Imola will be gone. Two US GPs would actually not be that unfair, given the size of the country and the population. But I'd really like to see some more Centra and South American GPs back.

 

1. I agree
2. Will NEVER happen (I know, never say never) The US fans are far-too few and the great unwashed prefer: "hey, nail it and go left... gimme a beer"

 

I'd like to see a return to Detroit through the streets, going by Cobo Hall and on Atwater by the deli and the river kinda-sorta had a Monaco feel to it. Just have to watch out for the bumps.

 

Ok, a quick question.

Why the personal insults on NASCAR fans? A question was asked (Will Ganassi make a difference in F1 acceptance in the US) and I answered (not really, the product has issues). Instead of debating the issue (does on-track F1 racing need to change to become more popular in the US? Should F1 chase that popularity?), the follow-up posts are all stereotypical insults -- dumb Americans, tootheless hicks, etc.

Fans of other series don't bash F1 fans on a personal level (and god knows they could), so why do you all always head to the trenches?

So, let's start again. Let's even keep NASCAR out of it this time, and let me pose this to you:

What will it take to make F1 as popular as, say, IRL open wheel racing in the US? Will Ganassi bring anything to the table in terms of creating some semblance of support for F1 in the US? What specifically is inaccurate about my earlier post and which of those proposed changes would not increase the popularity of the sport among those motorsports fans who don't currently care about F1?

 

Fair enough, I'll try behave. Actually to me this is a very common 'battle' as one of my best buddies is a die hard NASCAR fan who is trying to get interested in F1 and I'm somewhat trying to understand him.

IMHO F1 is a bit like soccer or baseball: It is a lot easier to love it, if you grew up with it. Especially when you grew up with it in Europe. As it was the case with me. I don't understand baseball (technically I do, but not on the level a true fan does) nor football and NASCAR and IRL leave me bored.

The part that surprises me about you Tillman is that you actually understand F1 (maybe even better than I do as your last year's arm chair win showed) and still don't love it. Sounds like there is no hope. That's why I said in another thread we're from different galaxies.

Anyway, coming back on the F1 popular in the States thing:

- We need a US team. Ganassi would be great.
- We need a US driver. Anybody will do.
- We need probably two GPs as the country is so big.
- We need some US car manufacturing involvement. It is nice that Jaguar is in there, but it would probably help the US market more if that car was branded as a product out of Detroit.

Also it wouldn't hurt if F1 would make its own show more interesting:
- More passing would help, I agree with you on that one. So less aerodynamic aids and less powerful brakes would be a good start. True.
- We need some supporting races. Right now Sunday is a dead time until the GP begins. Run CART before that or Formula Dodge. Anything.
- Some more stunts like Trading Paint where fans can compare the cars and technology.
- Gilles27 said once: F1 needs to return to its fan base. He is quite right. F1 in the eighties was up close and personal. Like CART is today. That would help, not just in the States.
- Less chauvinism. I include myself in that one. I still don't like NASCAR, but I shouldn't use every opportunity to just say that. You're right about that one.

 

I can't see any US manufacturer entering F1 anytime soon, merely out of fear of getting crushed, if Jaguar ever picks up i can see it being renamed FORD but that's the closest it's gonna get for a while.

 

Frankly, I think it's hopeless. I'm not trying to sound too condescending, honest Tillman, but there really IS a big cultural gap here that's tough to bridge. It's naive to expect Americans to relate to races run by teams and drivers they've not heard of and whose names they probably can't pronounce, taking place in locales they'll never visit. Like it or not, Americans are pretty unsophisticated and not a little xenophobic. I can't speak for South Americans, as I don't know many, but I know quite a few Europenas and visit there often- they're much more widely-traveled and open to different cultures.
It's not just the racing which, admittedly, could stand some improvement (but not at the expense of the technology, please)- it's just a lot easier for those few of us who're sufficiently well-traveled (and affluent?) to relate to Ferraris and exotic venues to appreciate this stuff, and people of that stripe aren't likely to ever be too numerous here in the US.

 

I think you hit it on the head there. Sadly.

I remember a comment I read in some US magazine about CART: The US fans were starting to complain about all the Non US races the series went to (like Japan and Germany). I was shocked: I was just starting to love CART for being specifically non US and having non US drivers and going to the real world, outside the US borders. And even this otherwise very American series gets criticized for that. So I think Ira is right, there is little hope for F1 in the US. And as Writerguy points out, that doesn't seem to matter too much as the US is still a relatively small part of the whole global marketing game F1 is playing in.

 

Good idea. The best way to make this work is actually by taking your friend to a real F1 race. I brought my friend along (Ira, you know him, Mike from the Cape who drove your GT/4) and he was stunned by seeing the F1 cars live at Indy.

He still prefers NASCAR and bashes processional F1 races, but he does watch them, he knows the cars and drivers and we can have armchair discussions on end.

Once in a while I make him a gift of a F1 book, that shows him another aspect of the game and I know he reads (and likes) them all.

But taking them to a real race where they can hear, see and smell the cars is key.

 

Writerguy may be right- I got my brother-in-law and sister-in-law hooked a few years ago. If we're willing to explain the subtleties to newcomers, maybe it'll help build an audience?

 

That certainly helps. I had once the good fortune to have been invited as VIP guest to the USGP. We had an event dinner and talked at our table about the upcoming race. The folks were all related via sponsors and soon into the conversation I realized they had no clue whatsoever. Not to show off but soon I found myself explaining to them the basic F1 rules, some of the history and the current cars and drivers.

Not sure I turned them into instant fans, but I think it did help as they kept asking me a thousand questions. I was quietly smiling to myself the next day, when they watched the prestart and thought this was already the real start.

 

Excellent idea, Andreas, albeit a bit pricey! I hadn't realized that Mike was a relatively recent F1 convert. I tried to convince him to come to Monaco- that even got my ex-wife hooked on F1!

 

Andreas- they thought the formation lap was the real thing- yikes! I'm sure you're right and they were all sponsor-related.

 

I take a bit of pride in "the education of Mike" as he probably smiles about me telling people how much I liked my trip to Daytona and that I want to take a Petty class. That goes to his credit. And yes, he is a fast study. Also when it comes to Ferraris, that's also my "work"...

Monaco is a good way to hook somebody, especially a woman as there is lots of culture if nothing else interests her. But it is very expensive these days. I'm glad I did my Monaco GPs when they were still affordable back in the eighties.

 

Yes Andreas, Monaco is a good venue to hook prospective F1 fans- lots of glitz and glamour. I've had a cheap hotel room there for years, and I'm loath to give it up so I still go every year- between frequent-flyer miles and the cheap room (a few blocks from the Casino), it's too good a deal to pass up. If I don't take the room every year, I'll lose it to whoever is next on the waiting list, so . . .