I too am old enough to have seen different eras in Formula One, where the emphasis was quite different. One good example was back in the 70's when just about anyone could show up with a kit car. Get a Cosworth, a decent chassis, and you could be competitive. Lord Hesketh was a very good example showing that this could be made to work. But the sport has grown up, and we can never go back. Formula One has become a very big buck sport, with big players involved. And sadly, the emphasis is very heavily weighed towards the engineering, the team, and car. These days, no driver, no matter how talented, experienced or motivated, can get to the podium without a top car and team behind him.
And although I absolutely love to examine the cars and technology of different teams, when the actual race is on, it's the drivers I cheer for. I've cheered for drivers, not because of the team they were on, but because I liked the driver. I've cheered for many Ferrari drivers.. Alesi, Lauda, and most strongly Gilles Villeneuve. And to be blunt, some of the years Villeneuve competed, the Ferrari was a POS compared to the competition.
I do a lot of comparisons with NASCAR, and despite the much smaller audience, they are a marketing gorilla. The cars, just like F1, have absolutely no similarities to the street offerings, yet somehow the fans are fiercely loyal to brand names. And the emphasis is on marketing and driver personalities. Although in all motorsports, wins and good finishes are relevant, in NASCAR many fans cheer for inferior drivers. Not because of ability, but the marketing behind them. For example, Michael Waltrip has much more fans than Matt Kenseth, yet Kenseth has a much better driving record, and is ten times the driver Michael is. It's all about marketing. And although there have emerged a few superteams within NASCAR, that capture the lion's share of the wins, on any Sunday any driver in any team could win a race. The technical regulations are incredibly restrictive to contain costs, yet the cars are very equal. It's only in the refinement and small details that things count. And if you're a fan of this type of stock car oval racing, they put on a great show. So there is a good argument in favor of same spec cars carrying commonality.
But I can also sympathise with the manufacturers. Back when cars were transitioning from carburetors to fuel injection, Ford developed it's ECU through racing programs. And it's only reasonable to allow any major investement to have a return. Manufacturers spend a lot of money, they do deserve to have their name splashed across the new services after race events.
There are two things I hope for, and know for certain. I pray Formula One never becomes like NASCAR, and that to allow the manufacturers to run the sport would be a certain and total disaster.
There are things I would love to see happen. That overtaking is not as difficult, the faster car has an easier chance to make a pass. That costs are contained, and that the drivers have more control of their fate once the race is underway, that a motivated and skilled driver may have a reasonable chance at the podium, no matter what the brand of car.
Although I'm no fan of Max, I can see where he's trying to go. In his confrontational, bullying, inept manner he's trying to achieve the same things I would like to see. But F1 is a very complex game, and no solution is easy or without negative consequences.
But I still love it, warts and all.
