F1 opener gets interesting
This weekend's Formula One season opener in Melbourne, Australia just got a whole lot more interesting. Minardi, F1's perennial backmarkers, have gained special dispensation from eight of the nine other F1 teams to run their 2004 challenger for the first few races of 2005. This dispensation was given as late rule changes were made for the 2005 season, and Minardi has F1's lowest budget, making them unable to begin the production of their 2005 car until rules had been set. Makes perfect sense, especially since F1 can ill-afford to lose another team, and Minardi is not a threat to win a grand prix any time soon. Yet, Ferrari, who have won six consecutive Constructor's Titles, are the only team refusing to agree to let Minardi run their old cars. Without Ferrari's signature, Minardi's cars are unlikely to pass scrutineering, thus being deemed illegal to race. This is where things could get very, very interesting, as Paul Stoddart (Minardi's owner) recently had this to say…
"Put it this in way, if Minardi's wheels do not turn this weekend they will not be the only ones, the Group of Nine (made up of all F1 teams but Ferrari) is pretty strong and there is an agreement between everyone except Ferrari."
Interesting statement indeed. Stay tuned for more, as the Australian Grand Prix will surely provide more interest this weekend.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Brocktoon 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Man, Ferrari is doing eveything it possibly can to destroy F1. It's no suprise Berine is looking to places like China for a whole new legion of fans, everyone in the west is fed up with Ferrari parades every second Sunday.
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HardwareLust 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Great, so now there's 18 cars on the grid instead of 20.
Why don't we save a whole bunch of money, and a whole lot of bitching and moaning, and just give Michael and Ferrari their respective championships right now. They can take their whiny asses back to Modena and Germany, and the rest of us can commence with some real competition fighting it out for 2nd, 3rd, etc. It'll be a lot more exciting, and we won't have to worry about Bernie and what's his name kissing Ferrari's ass for the next 7 months. Plus, we might actually see some real racing, instead of a parade of F1 cars with Michael at the front.
I dearly love F1, but the people that run it need to be slapped around. They have no idea what they could have had.
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Tal Danzig 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Can someone please explain why Ferrari is "killing F1"? How? By being the best team on the track? Remember that Ferrari's recent success comes after a long dry spell of winning no championships, dispite which Ferrari never gave up on F1 racing. If the other teams want to stop Ferrari's dominance then they should focus on building better cars and finding better drivers, not squabling about regulations or GPWC. We all know that F1 is about as expensive as you can get for a manufacturer; that's because F1 is supposed to be the hight of motorsport. As for letting Minardi run on a 2004 car, if the rest of the teams could produce at the very least a modified 2004 car, why not Minardi?
Personally, I think what's needed to promote F1 further is better TV coverage and better tracks.
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Andrew 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Ferrari is killing F1 not by it's actions on the track, but by their actions off of it.
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Brocktoon 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Please inform yourself before posting something like that. Ferrai dominance is artificial, when they got the bucks that would see that continue outside the current Concorde Agreement they dropped WCGP like a hot potato. Why? it would level the playing field, and cause Ferrari to loose it's Prima Donna status. Boo Hoo.
If they cared about the sport, Jean Todt would not be going around saying that "as superstars, they deserve to be paid as such" meaning cut of the revenues. Imagine if one year the team winning the Stanley Cup got the lion's share of league revenues, and then refused to play teams that did not do a bunch of new 20 millin dollar signings? Sounds rediculous, but that's about the nature of what's going on.
Oh yeh, letting off at the last moment so your team-mate can pass, and then swapping podium positions at the ceremony, that's good sportmanship in the best interest of the sport, right?
Wrong. Path of distruction!!
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Brocktoon 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
I was talking to Danzig
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Steven Diver 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Tal...
Minardi could not produce a 2005 car because the team has the smallest budget in F1...estimated to be under $50-million per year. At a time when Ferrari are spending upwards of $450-500 million per year, it should become clear why Minardi could not take a chance on building a car before the 2005 rules were set in stone. If they build a car, and the rules change, they have no money to build another car...they would be bankrupt, and F1 would lose another team...something it call ill-afford. Ferrari, Williams, McLaren, Renault, etc. have the resources to be wrong, and still produce another car.
And Ferrari is not killing F1, but they are certainly doing nothing to help it. The success they have had on track they deserve, they worked hard for it. But the fact is, all the team principals put F1 where it is today by their narrow mindedness.
However, from here on out, it could be said that Ferrari's actions are to the detriment of the sport however...
1. Not agreeing to restrict testing, as the other 9 teams have in a signed gentleman's agreement, in order to reduce costs.
2. Not agreeing to allow Minardi to run their 2004 cars for the first few races of 2005 - note that Minardi are still 4-5 seconds off the pace from the front runners, even with their 2004-spec car.
3. Jean Todt claiming that "Ferrari are special" and they deserve to be treated as such.
I'd like to believe F1 is bigger than Ferrari...lets hope Ferrari can realize that, and start making some decisions that lead towards a better F1 for everyone involved, not just themselves.
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gary 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Let's hope that Ferrari's budget gets curtailed as part of Fiat's restructuring. Ferrari at a comparable budget to the other top teams will bring competition back into line.
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peter 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Ferrari plus Bernie equals boring racing, and fewer teams. It's that simple. Strange how some supposedly smart people can't understand what damage they are doing.
Bring on the rival series. F1 has become irrelevant and if Ferrari want to continue on alone with Bernie after 2007 they can have the whole track to themselves? Has anyone ever seen a Cup Final with only one team playing? Wake up Bernie and RETIRE!
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Tal Danzig 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Well, for all the fuss and bother Minardi's car passed scrutineering ( http://www.pitpass.com/fes_php/pitpass_news_item.php?fes_art_id=23661 ).
I'm not claiming that Ferrari are the best of sports, but I'm saying claiming that they are ruining F1 is over the top. It seems to me to be mostly a reaction to their dominating perfomance on the track (which other teams have had in the past to various extents). I freely admit that I'm not wise to all the ins and outs of F1 politics. That being said, I think that F1s success rides on drawing viewers to races rather than on back room wheeling and dealing (something that seems to go on in F1 in equal or greater measure than what happens on the track).
I guess in the end the problem comes down to money. In a sport as technical as F1 thowing down the most money gives you the best shot of wining, and as Steven Diver mentioned above, a 50 million dollar team has a tough time competing with a team that can spend half a billion dollars a season. However, money alone won't win the race. The technical expertise, testing, and driving is still the key, as is having the right people on your team.
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Andrew 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
>>Oh yeh, letting off at the last moment so your team-mate can pass, and then swapping podium positions at the ceremony, that's good sportmanship in the best interest of the sport, right?<<
This has been going on in F1 since it's first race. Do you know anything about the history of the sport? Did you know that Fangio once got out of his car and into his team mates car so he could finish the race and pursue the title? Is that good sportsmanship? Racing is about individuals and it's about teams. Always has been, always will be.
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Chris K 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Personally, I just wish the races weren't so horribly boring. I love auto racing, but F1 is just flat-out boring to watch. Even classic car races have more passing.
I watched a few races last season, and the only thing I remember from the entire series is a BAR blowing up in Monaco. No leadership battles, no point races, not even any Zanardi-like passes. Just a Honda blowing up.
Even NASCAR is more entertaining.
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Brocktoon 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Yes Andrew, I know such capers have been going on for years, but never has a team had such negotiated dominance, and then rubbed it in the face of the fans, other teams and the sport in general. It's a farce!
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