Empty grandstands at Hockenheim?

[xpensive]

In all honesty, I have this feeling that having Formula 1 ran by an 84 year old is the part of the problem,
in particular when it comes to taking the sport into the 21st century, very much like Lauda said above.

[Cam]

I'm not so sure. MrE is smart (probably also corrupt and guilty of many crimes from bribery to tax evasion). He hasn't got what he's got from dumb ass luck. There's probably a very rationale (in his head anyway) reason for driving the sport into the ground. There's been a lot of speculation why so I won't go into that. But I do disagree that it's down to dementia or 'old man' syndrome.

He's either an idiot sevant that us mortals cannot comprehend, or he's an idiot. As much as i hate it, and as a fan disagree, I know where I'll put my money.

[jz11]

Niki Lauda's take on the situation;

http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns28529.html

5 years into the future, streaming has been implemented, but viewer numbers have started to drop again - and someone comes up with a magnificent idea to revive peoples interest in the sport, since the communication can be bidirectional - LET'S MAKE F1 INTERACTIVE!
"Always wanted to be a racing engineer? Now is your chance! Add a credit card to your streaming account and be able to adjust Lewis Hamiltons knobs on his Ferarri steering wheel during a race!"





p.s. don't take this too seriously

[Cam]

Niki Lauda's take on the situation;

http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns28529.html

5 years into the future, streaming has been implemented, but viewer numbers have started to drop again - and someone comes up with a magnificent idea to revive peoples interest in the sport, since the communication can be bidirectional - LET'S MAKE F1 INTERACTIVE!
"Always wanted to be a racing engineer? Now is your chance! Add a credit card to your streaming account and be able to adjust Lewis Hamiltons knobs on his Ferarri steering wheel during a race!"





p.s. don't take this too seriously

Future? It's here now. Maldonado cranked his credit card all the way up.

[jz11]

well, he has the ultra premium package multiyear deal, I was thinking more about the masses - cast a vote (2$) to turn Sebs multi knob to position 83, enough votes are cast - the knob gets turned, but we already know that Seb would ignore it (thus the cheap price), or when Rosberg adjusted the brake bias few races back to full front, guess how many people in Britain wished that bias to go back to rear, at least a little, wouldn't they pay few quid to maybe make it happen?

[Cam]

Well, they are trialling this sort of thing with FE. No idea if it will take. This sort of thing is fickle and even great ideas, bomb, while terrible ones, become standards.

The answer lies in TPB. What do people want to see? Violence, danger, epic battles and sex. Not Eco. Not safe.

Hockenheim was a collusem where the masses used to watch gladiators duel. Who wants to see some no talent walk around with a dyson?

[acosmichippo]

The answer lies in TPB. What do people want to see? Violence, danger, epic battles and sex. Not Eco. Not safe.

People also want to see big car manufacturers and the most talented drivers (who would not be in the sport if it were still running v10's and killing competitors).

And I disagree regarding violence and danger. F1 has been very safe for a long time; if we're only now suspecting viewership loss due to lack of danger, it couldn't have been that big of a draw in the first place. If anything, it helps since the best drivers aren't killed off prematurely. Imagine how many people stopped watching F1 after Senna died.

[Vettel Maggot]

After watching the GP2 race yesterday afternoon I am convinced F1 will be dead in 5 years unless something changes drastically. The show that was put on by the GP2 guys was fantastic. I already know who is going to win the F1 race on Sunday. Unless mechanical issues strike.

What is the point in spending all of this money on an F1 team (Caterham/Marussia) to run around 3-4 seconds faster than a GP2 car in a horrible sounding, pretend 'green' ugly looking puss box with drivers that have the personality of a bar of soap. The empty grandstands tell the story.

But wait, sparks will fix it.

[George-Jung]

They should have a rule that teams may spend a certain amount of money a year.. and that they are free to design their car as they want... and they are also free to create their engine the way they want..

The only rules that should aply are the once to ensure safety.. regarding crash structures and the maximum size of a car..

That would be great.

[xpensive]

I'm not so sure. MrE is smart (probably also corrupt and guilty of many crimes from bribery to tax evasion). He hasn't got what he's got from dumb ass luck. There's probably a very rationale (in his head anyway) reason for driving the sport into the ground. There's been a lot of speculation why so I won't go into that. But I do disagree that it's down to dementia or 'old man' syndrome.

He's either an idiot sevant that us mortals cannot comprehend, or he's an idiot. As much as i hate it, and as a fan disagree, I know where I'll put my money.

What I mean is that it's unlikely that an 84 year old is updated on the rapid development of communication technologies such as streaming and smartphones, as Niki Lauda said, young people don't watch TV at home on a Sunday afternoon anymore.

Neither are they prepared to pay 200+ Euros to watch silent-racing like this live. I know I'm not.

[acosmichippo]

After watching the GP2 race yesterday afternoon I am convinced F1 will be dead in 5 years unless something changes drastically. The show that was put on by the GP2 guys was fantastic. I already know who is going to win the F1 race on Sunday. Unless mechanical issues strike.

Well, it should be obvious that a spec series would offer much closer competition. Don't get me wrong, I agree that a lot needs to be changed with F1, I'm just not sure this comparison illustrates that.

[xpensive]

After watching the GP2 race yesterday afternoon I am convinced F1 will be dead in 5 years unless something changes drastically. The show that was put on by the GP2 guys was fantastic. I already know who is going to win the F1 race on Sunday. Unless mechanical issues strike.

Well, it should be obvious that a spec series would offer much closer competition. Don't get me wrong, I agree that a lot needs to be changed with F1, I'm just not sure this comparison illustrates that.

There were times in 70s-90s that you knew who was going to win, but the technical diversity made up for that.

Now there is nothing.

[Vettel Maggot]

After watching the GP2 race yesterday afternoon I am convinced F1 will be dead in 5 years unless something changes drastically. The show that was put on by the GP2 guys was fantastic. I already know who is going to win the F1 race on Sunday. Unless mechanical issues strike.

Well, it should be obvious that a spec series would offer much closer competition. Don't get me wrong, I agree that a lot needs to be changed with F1, I'm just not sure this comparison illustrates that.

My point exactly. A far cheaper, less complex series is providing far better entertainment. What's the point of spending all these millions on an F1 team when the end product is garbage? Is it time to 'dumb down' F1 a little? People like to pretend its 'relevant' to road cars, but I'd rather have a less technological minded series than what we have now, rather than no F1 series at all in the future.

[ESPImperium]

F1 needs lots of change, my views have been forthright for about 2-3 years now, and some of my proposals are as follows:

- Get rid of Bernie, he is old stale and pale. The F1 business model is out dated and needs modernising.
- FIA needs overhauling with a modern management structure.
- Prize money overhaul, and get Ferrari to give up their €150m straight off the top, its is anti competitive.
- Budget cap at €250m a year for chassis and €150m for Engine suppliers. Both numbers need to reduce after 2 years by 20% and after 5 by 50%
- Give the engine guys a 3 year amnesty of development with a stable engine rule set for 7 years.
- Chassis guys will have a 2 year amnesty with a 5 year stable rule set.
- Drivers need to compete in at least 50 GP2 or WSR races and take part in at least 5 days testing and 5 FP1 sessions (Tests and FP1 sessions need to be over a 2 year period immediate to becoming a F1 driver) to gain a super licence. Ideally id also include at least one years racing at Le Mans in a LMP2 or LMP1 car in this as well.
- Ditch the stupid rule where once you have competed in F1 you can't go back to GP2, drivers should be allowed to go back to GP2 or WSR to rebuild reputation. Same with GP3 WSR 2.0.
- Make F1 teams profitable.
- Make penalties simpler to understand.

Id also make about 20-30 other smaller tweaks as well. But all are under the surface, but would be felt.

Id also like to make rule for the tracks, that if they don't sell 90% of their tickets for their capacity they will have their race removed. Id like to see 90% of the tracks full by 90% of the time and not 50% of them full 50% of the time. Even if they like China give €57m a year or like Malaysia €59m a year, you need to fill your grandstands. Abu Dhabi has it right, they have 65,000 capacity, and are 98.8% full every session to 2012 figures. Monaco pays €2.4m and Monza pays €8m for the two lowest figures.

[Vettel Maggot]

Also while your at it, get rid of those horrendous Santander plastic trophys!