Safety and Gravel Traps

Safety and Gravel Traps

  September 13, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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Several years ago, a friend of mine was practising for a saloon car race at Sepang. Rain was pouring down that day and of course he wanted to have a go and get the feel of the car in the wet. Now, my friend has been accused of dubious sanity at times and so it was that day. Coming into turn 12, normally one would stay in third and power out of the turn in the wet. But not he. He decided it to try it in fourth and hope for the best. Well, the tail went and went really fast and he sat there hapless in the driver's seat whilst the car decided it was time to say hello to the gravel.

Now, anyone who's ever built sandcastles would know that a little moisture on the sand will compact the stuff. Well, the gravel on the run off for turn 12 was very wet which made it pretty firm. The car hit the gravel which then sent it rolling over. Thankfully, the roll cage did its job and he was able to walk out and back home to him pregnant wife. No sign of distress or shock, his only complaint was the roof had caved a little and touched his helmet. Incidentally, my friend holds the dubious honour of being the first ever driver to roll over his car at Sepang. Way to go mate! But the point is gravel can indeed be a little dangerous in the wet.

In the dry, it stops a saloon car dead in its tracks with no way out. And formula one cars as well. But sometimes its not unknown for a smooth and relatively flat bottomed single seater to skip over the gravel and plunge directly into the wall. Flipping over can also happen. Wings can break send shards into the cockpit and god knows what other effects incidental to the laws of physics. Which was the argument made by the driver's represented by the Grand Prix Drivers Association for Sunday's race at Monza.

The Monza officials, the FIA and even Bernie jumped in and argued that the high speed safety barriers were state of the art being able to absorb the impact of a Formula 1 travelling at 125mph and yet still be able to keep deceleration forces to tolerable levels for the driver. The Monza officials said that they had no duty to the drivers and only to the FIA. The FIA concurred and said that local officials were under orders to ignore everyone else (including the drivers) when it came to matters of safety. The FIA statement read:

"The owners of circuits licensed for Formula 1 are required not to discuss safety measures with third parties (including drivers)." Pompous arrogant shits. Howzabout they strap themselves into a single seater and crash test the barriers and see if it is a pleasant experience. The GPDA argued that high friction asphalt as used in places like Istanbul was far safer and they would have liked to see them in use in Monza.

But of course that makes sense for given even the slightest whiff of grip and a grand prix car will slow right down to a halt. But if its skipping over gravel (not an unknown occurrence) then no AP Racing calipers and pads will be able to stop a nasty smack in the barriers, which can be a very painful experience. Even crashing into unsecured polystyrene foam can hurt a driver travelling at very high speeds. I've seen that happen at Hockenheim back in the late 80s.

Whatever the case may be I think its one helluva way to treat drivers who are risking their lives out there. Yes, safety improvements have grown leaps and bounds since the 70s but no one wants to be in pain unnecessarily. I think the drivers have legitimate concerns and the FIA and circuit officials need to listen to them. Or at least give some respect to them and meet up as they had agreed at Monza that weekend. The drivers were simply ignored and thats simply not right. Remember it was drivers that started this crusade of safety that the FIA likes to take full credit for in the first place.

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Well Well Well....

Well Well Well....

  September 13, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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Very interesting story concerning Bernie Ecclestone's recent comments in The Bild. According to the article Bernie describes the Alonso penalty as a farce. Whilst not going so far as to call it a 'fix' nevertheless he admits that "Ferrari is the only team 'that gets political support' from the FIA." I'm sorry Bernie, would you please repeat that? There are some mindless scarlet fans out there who didn't quite hear you. Now, shall we wait for Bernie to give a statement claiming that his comments were merely jest?

In a related story Pitpass discusses the F-word. Perception according to them is everything and the mere perception that the sport is rigged could have serious reprecussions. Good read.

Meanwhile our friend Checkpoint10 has decided to take a little sabbatical from blogging but leaves us with his vision of racing. Something he's asked me to do once before but I have yet to come to that. Hopefully someday when I've stopped being so angry with the current situation. Hope to see you again soon mate!

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Disrepute

Disrepute

  September 10, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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It may have been an academic argument once Fernando Alonso's engine expired in a cloud of smoke in Monza yesterday but nevertheless his grid penalty after Saturday's qualifying was still the subject of some very heated words from both the world champion and his team boss. Most damning of all was Alonso who said : "I think one per cent of people here will be happy today - those who yesterday decided the race. I hope they sleep well tonight." Furthermore, he "no longer consider F1 is a sport."

No doubt Fernando is more than a little upset about the entire affair and why shouldn't he be? As mentioned numerous times everywhere, little retard boy was no where close to him either on the straights or in the corners. Even if, as Ferrari argues, that the aero turbulence caused delay to Massa, Fernando cannot be penalised for the behaviour of the laws of physics. The world champion himself was trying to catch the start/finish line with mere seconds remaining on the clock to start his banzai lap. Massa was clearly from the television pictures at least 100 metres away.

Understandably, even Flavio Briatore, who is normally sympathetic to the FIA (being of course a good friend of both Max and Bernie) was livid. "This is a world championship which has already been decided at the table," said the supermodel dater. "We have understood how things go – it has all been decided...they have decided to give the world championship to Schumacher and that is how it will be.” And , “Compared to what is happening in Formula 1, ‘Calciopoli’ just makes me smile.” He would later recant this last statement saying that it was all a joke taken out of context. I doubt if Max would actually penalize Flavio for this but he could under the heading of "bringing the sport to disrepute." I say bring it on. For the actual fact is, it is the bloody FIA that has brought the sport into disrepute.

Max though had this to say when talking to Martin Brundle. In the interview:

Brundle: "I’ve looked at it very closely, I’ve raced 158 GPs, I commentated on it live, Alonso was so far ahead that you wouldn’t have known whether it was a Toyota, Renault or a McLaren at one point…"

Mad Max: "That is exactly where you are wrong. You see we have the advantage that we have the actual data from the car. We can look at what actually happened to the car, we can see whether it was a driver error or whether it was an aerodynamic problem and so on.He was destabilised in the Parabolica because of the wake of the car in front. That wouldn’t have happened if Alonso had had more time."

In the end even Max admitted the need for a change of ruling. But consummate politician he said : "What we are thinking very seriously about is to say next season that we will only look at these questions only if there is evidence of deliberate impeding - or in other words, intent. I don't think there was intent, but what they [the stewards] did was absolutely consistent with the rest of the season." Furthermore : "Now the rule is, rightly or wrongly, that if you are on your out-lap then you move over for the man who is on his hot lap. He did not do it - one driver suffered, and he gained an advantage."

Like all good politicians Max has a wonderful way of deflecting arguments to suit his purpose. For one thing, in the Brundle interview he claimed that the Renault team was late in sending him on his way and therefore Fernando had to hurry it up and in the process delayed Massa. Or at least, his aero turbulence did.

Both arguments are spurious. For one thing, Renault's delay was caused by a puncture suffered by Fernando. He was driving on his wheel rims and shedding bodywork all the way. Surely Renault would have had to do at least a quick check and then seeing that time was still available sent him on his way. And yet, if we follow the idiot's words, Renault should have simply hurried it up and let him go.

As for aero turbulence causing delay to Massa, a driver should be penalized for blocking and not for his bloody aerodynamics. And lastly, I do not recall any other situation this year where the stewards came to this same conclusion. In the case that I do remember, the one involving Fisichella and Villeneuve, the pair was much closer together and therefore Fisichella did have some case.

Given how critical this decision was to the world championship, you can see why the conspiracy theorists are having a field day. This coupled with the whole mass damper affair gives plenty of ammunition to those who believe that this championship is being rigged for a big finale, if not to give Ferrari and Schumacher (and the legion of tifosi) one last hurrah before Schumi leaves.

In the end though, it did not affect the outcome of the race per se for as we all know the Renault engine blew up. Fernando may have attributed that to having to use more revs than needed but the fact remains that his car retired. But still it has yet again left a bitter taste and once again calls upon the need for better governance of the sport. Except that the teams and manufacturers are such cowards that they will simply let this one slide yet again.

Someone recently accused me of being pessimistic. Well, if I am then I have every right to be. Yes, FIA presidents have always caused controversy but none to the extent of bloody Mad Max. He has single handedly changed the face and spirit of Formula 1 racing with his new technical rules that have upset and alienated most die hard fans. He has made greater errors in vast numbers in applying the sporting regulations. And he has even stooped to deliberate lying and gross misrepresentation. Disrepute? If anyone has put the sport to disrepute not once but on countless occassions then it is the FIA president himself and his cohorts who should stand trial.

Pessimistic? I shall not count the ways here. But you give me a reason to smile. Perhaps if you could lend me your rose tinted glasses so that I can.

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BMW and Williams

BMW and Williams

  September 09, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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An excellent qualifying session by Nick Heidfeld for the Italian Grand Prix prompted me to think about the fortunes of both BMW and Williams so far this season. After a messy divorce last year, BMW bought over the Sauber team whilst Williams opted for Cosworth power for this season. Mario Thiessen of course was being very cautious when he stated that Williams would probably have the upper hand in 2006.

The results so far have been very different. At the beginning of the year, indeed Williams as expected by fans and pundits alike were blazing trails with both drivers Mark Webber and Nico Rosberg. In fact, the young Finn / German took the world by storm with a great finish in Bahrain and then a remarkable qualifying session in Sepang. But unfortunately for Grove, things took a turn for the worse.

By contrast the BMW team have gone from strength to strength. Dr M. Thiessen must be grinning from ear to ear especially after reading what both Williams and the British press, most notably Pitpass, had to say about him after all the acrimony from last year. 'I told you so' doesn't quite cover it. Still, it seems that BMW are putting that super sophisticated Sauber wind tunnel and Albert supercomputer to far more effective use than Peter Sauber ever could. Of course, Peter Sauber didn't have the budget that the Munich concern can command. And it seems that BMW's expansion of the Sauber operations by bringing in lots of new staff have proven to be spot on. The results on the track do not lie. The now ousted Jacques Villeneuve still leads both the Williams drivers on points as of the Turkish Grand Prix. Nick Heidfeld looks to be uncatchable the rate he's going.

I fear for Williams. He's the last of that hard core breed of racers from the 70s. Yes I know Ron Dennis is still there but let's face it McLaren are now indistinguishable from the team that won the 1976 driver's world title with James Hunt. Nowadays they are as disgustingly corporate as Mercedes, their biggest shareholder. No, Frank is the last of the lot. And yet now after nearly 10 seasons without a driver's title and ages since their last win, they are beginning to look a lot like Tyrrell and Ligier did in the 80s. Contenders throughout the 70s, absolute has-beens in the early 80s. Williams is in danger of being well stuck in midfield. In fact, Williams' loss of prestige began quite some time ago. For instance in 2001, I remember reading a news report from Reuters termed the team as "wannabes." Oi, have you no respect??!!

Of course hope still survives in the form of Toyota for next year. The deal is expected to last through to 2009 (or was that 2008?) and for me represents the last chance for Frank to pick his team up and become contenders once more. Of course he probably needs a good title sponsor to decorate his side pods in order to do so but with Toyota power behind him, that ought to be easier. Ought being the keyword for it is by no means certain the way the team have been going in recent times and of course due to poor world economic conditions.

In Nico Rosberg they have a promising (and cheap) young talent but is he capable of being a team leader? He seems intelligent enough and this is after all only his first season. Senna was pretty much the same at Toleman in 1984 before rising as virtual commander in chief of the Lotus team in 1985 (to the chagrin of the poor late Elio de Angelis). The other driver for next year Alex Wurz to me represents a poor option. No doubt he will bring some money to the table but there is a reason why McLaren kept him as a test driver all these years. That is, he's simply is bollocks no matter some people may think. At best, he's just a journeyman.

With so many changes at Williams one wonders who really is in charge of the car these days (I'm too lazy to find out right now). But surely, the technical team is not quite what it used to be. Yes, Sam Michael is something of a genius but I'm not sure that a software systems chap should be leading the tech guys in a racing team. Not at this level at any rate. Just as I don't think Vasselon is a good choice for Toyota. Both Williams and Toyota have plenty of work to do. Williams to me have more to lose because of their proud history. I sincerely hope they succeed.

And what of Toyota? What if the Williams Toyota consistently outperforms the works cars next year? I simply wonder how that would go down in the corridors of power in Japan. Eddie Jordan did suggest recently that Frank ought to be selling up to the Japanese. But surely this is untenable. After all the investment made to their Cologne operations, surely the Japanese are not considering making another major purchase in Britain, no matter how much better that would be in fact. There's just too much sunk into Cologne. And surely no one should suggest that Frank sell out to a non-manufacturer and end up being another stupid Midland team.

Finally, I do hope BMW does well too only if to make folks like Pitpass eat their words. They certainly are showing signs of improvement technically. In Sebastien Vettel I believe they have a true superstar in the making. Not since Alonso and Raikkonen debuted in 2001 have I seen a more impressive new driver. No, not even Nico Rosberg. Of course Vettel hasn't raced yet but any guy who can jump into a Formula 3 car and end up on the podium in Macau on his first attempt has got to be quite good. Nico Rosberg was nowhere on his first try. And now jumping into a Formula 1 car and going quickest, albeit in practise, shows that this lad simply understands what's going on. And that is incredibly important in this sport.

Interesting to see what happens next year. Come on Frank. Pull your socks up.

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So Much For Image

So Much For Image

  August 30, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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Following the Turkish GP podium controversy, the Cyprus Mail newspaper was moved to write this piece of commentary regarding Formula 1. Comments about the Cyprus Mail article also appears on GrandPrix.com. Whilst the FIA and Formula 1 in general is so ultra careful in these corporate infested days to keep a professional, clean and politically correct image it seems that there are many who know otherwise. Hint: they are probably not Ferrari fans.

Ignoring the political bits, the article distills the current state of the sport almost to perfection. From the Cyprus Mail article:

"FORMULA 1 is a sport that makes as many headlines off the track as on it. Races are rarely decided by audacious overtaking manoeuvres, rather by split second actions in the pits and strategies devised by men staring at computer screens. Key championship points have been decided in the courts, victims falling foul of ever-changing technical rules, deductions and disqualifications.

It’s a sport over which hovers a cloud of conspiracy, a constant suspicion of manipulation of rules and results to suit the hidden agendas of shadowy backstage figures. And yet in spite of this, it is regarded as the pinnacle of motor sport, a multi-million pound industry commanding a vast global audience."

Furthermore:

"Formula 1 is..... a sport where competitors go round and round in circles, as compulsive to its addicts as it is bewildering to the non-initiate, a sport where the substance, the raw racing, has long given way to the self-interest of its organisers and participants, pulling arcane strings in an ultimately pointless yet strangely mesmerising ballet."

To which I would add that the sport is fast losing the "purist" fans and entertainment seekers. Its new rules alienate purists, its lack of track action distance fans looking for thrills. Some job the FIA is doing then. But its heartening to see evidence that even the mainstream press is not buying into the Max and Bernie WWF show, of which the "mass damper" issue was but the latest episode.

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What If He Makes It?

What If He Makes It?

  August 09, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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Lots seem to be happening in F1 this year but not least we have lost a great driver in Juan Pablo Montoya. I know his departure is old news but nevertheless I'd like to make my comments on this.

I know a lot of people seem to think that he's a slacker at best and a wanker at worse but to my mind Juan Pablo's departure means that Formula 1 has lost an incredible talent. I simply cannot believe jerks like Tiago Monteiro still remain but a genius Juan are surplus to requirements. Consider the Colombian's debut season in 2001. After a couple of races, here was this rookie seemingly without any fear and in a straight fight outbrakes Michael Schumacher going into Turn 1 at Interlagos. Had anyone been watching Juan in Champcars the previous two years it would have come as no surprise. But what I liked was the utter defiance against so great a driver and then triple world champion.

And I really find it hard to believe that a driver who clearly could outpace Kimi Raikkonen himself in similar machinery was sidelined as he was at McLaren. Of course Juan Pablo made his mistakes but his speed cannot be denied. I believe he'd be fast no matter what he drives and truth be told I think he would have been a better choice for Red Bull than Mark Webber.

Anyways, as we all know he's off to NASCAR now. Honestly speaking I have no idea if he'll do well there or not. These saloon cars are big and heavy and are a world away from the lightweight and excessively powerful Formula 1 single seaters. Its a whole different style of driving. But what he ought to get used to quite quickly is the level of racing in the series. Typical of saloon car races its very competitive with lots of argy bargy going on. Somehow I think he'd get pretty used to that given his character behind the wheel. But he'll still need time to adjust. Saloon cars are no mean feat. Look at what happened to Mansell when he tried a BTCC Mondeo. Round and round we go..........

Can you imagine if Juan Pablo makes it big in NASCAR? I mean Juan has a pretty big following worldwide. Certainly he has many fans over here in Malaysia. By and large, the rest of the world cares very little for this sport of the deep South. But if Juan Pablo is making it there, you can be certain interest levels would definitely go up. Heck, you might even catch me trying to get a glimpse from time to time just to see how one of my favourite drivers is doing.

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Hungarian Splash

Hungarian Splash

  August 08, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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OK I have to confess, I did watch the Hungarian Grand Prix last weekend. Now look. What else would you have me do whilst having my dinner in front of the telly that night? Watch Oprah? No bloody way. I'd already watched Snatch countless of times before so dinner entertainment would have to be the race. Of course I expected to switch off once I finished my meal given that its Hungary. Surprisingly, the race was actually quite a fun one to watch.

Reading the comments on PlanetF1 after the race, I was quite surprised to see that many people thought the Jense was merely lucky to have won the event. The argument goes that the big three Raikkonen, Alonso and Schumi all retired and thats the only way he could have won. Are these fools on crack or something? Perhaps they too think that vibrating wing mirrors give some sort of unfair aero advantage.

For starters, Raikkonen could hardly keep his own teammate and eventual runner up from catching him. How on Earth would he have finished ahead of Jenson at the finish is beyond me. And Michael? Hmmm.... alright blame the Bridgestone rubber for his snail's pace at the start, putting paid to his chances overall. But before he retired, hadn't he already been passed by both de la Rosa and Heidfeld? Yes, Alonso lost his nut but he was inexorably being caught by Jenson before his stop. I doubt if he could do anything to keep the Briton behind. Come on people, I'm not a big Jenson fan but he absolutely deserved this win.

Michael Schumacher's first incident at the chicane involving Pedro de la Rosa was clearly another case of cheating from the multi world champion. He did gain an advantage by cutting right across the chicane but instead of yielding the position to de la Rosa, he elected to cover his line and continue on his merry way. All this when it was clear that de la Rosa had the inside line on the entry and was poised to rob the German of his position.

Never mind that Pedro eventually succeeded in passing him. Pedro need not have to go on taking risks when the position was already rightfully his. Never mind that Michael then failed in his attempt to keep Nick Heidfeld at bay and had his suspension tagged beyond repair. He should have been docked his one point because not for the first time this season has Das Prick flaunted the regulations deliberately.

Putting all this aside now, one could hardly fail to notice just how poor those Bridgestone tyres are in the wet. I'm pretty sure everyone on those tyres had at one point or another a spin or two. Even the so-called "Regenmeister" Schumacher. Well, it was pretty damned wet in Donington 1993 too but I remember the winner kept it all together quite nicely..... I remain unconvinced of Michael's ultimate ability in the wet. Good? Of course. Better than all of the current crop for sure. But Rain Master? No. Not quite.

All in all quite entertaining and its always good to welcome someone else into the winner's circle.

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Spirito Di Corsa

Spirito Di Corsa

  July 30, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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Those who have been following this blog will know that lately I have been very disillusioned by some of the developments in grand prix racing. In particular with matters pertaining to the future rules and regulations. The new rules dreamt up and forced down the throats of teams and fans are to my mind an affront to the very spirit of racing. The question I have been trying to grasp with even as I watched and enjoyed the very human endeavour of the World Cup (in total disgust of racing) is this: Just what exactly is the spirit of racing?

Where to begin? If we look back in the distant past to the dawn of the automobile age, motor racing started with the Paris to Rouen Trial in 1894. As the title suggested, it wasn't so much racing as a trial of different methods of engine propulsion. We all know about the internal combustion engine today but back in those days there were other ways of sending a horseless carriage down the road. And that included bloody steam engines and you'd be surprised to know,even electricity was being used even way back then. As to the other technologies used, I have no idea what they were but suffice to say, they never passed the test.

The first actual motor race as we know today, that is first past the finish line, began with the 1895 Paris-Bordeaux-Paris motor race. Over 700 miles long, the race took three days to complete. The winner apparently averaged a breakneck 15 mph! But the whole point of these first few races were to provide a proving ground for automobiles against other means of long distance travel such as the horse and the locomotive.

The point to prove of course, was that the automobile was just as fast if not faster than the aforementioned alternatives. In those days, people were still very much sceptical to the whole idea of the horseless carriage. They were viewed as slow, noisy and not very reliable. The first races were held as way to prove their worth by covering large distances and in the process prove that they were superior to the horse and at least be able to compete with the locomotive as a quick enough means of long distance travel.

Even in those days, cars were being divided into classes depending on whether the vehicle were a tricycle or had four wheels and also dependent on the number of seats it had. Everything else though was pure innovation, with the emphasis being on speed. Cars had to be seen to be quicker than all other means of transport. Up until the Great War, cars turned up with a variety of engine configurations of various different sizes. Ridiculous as it sounds today, capcities of 12 litres or more were not unheard of. Those cars maxed out at a stately 1,500 RPM. Today we have 2.4 litres and 20,000 RPM.

In a very short period of time, the automobile no longer needed to prove its worth but the culture of racing had already been created. The point of those races was speed and any development or innovation that helped those cars go faster was only to be encouraged and applauded. For the next 100 years, this culture of speed and innovation persisted and has given us all many wonderful creations from some rather brilliant engineers.

Some of those technologies developed for racing spilled over to everyday road cars. Take the now ubiquitous double overhead cam engine. It was first introduced by Swiss engineer Erenst Henry in the 1912 French Grand Prix on his Peugeots and soon adopted by the other manufacturers. Story has it, it was developed at huge cost. Heck, if the DOHC engine had not been invented till today and if poor Ernst wished to bring it to play, you can be sure that Max would concoct some sort of safety and cost excuse for its exclusion. Its true that usage of DOHC technology did not appear in mass produced automobiles until 50 years later on Fiats, yet its creation was as a result of competition and the need for yet more speed and today its benefits spillover to the cars you and I drive.

Its important to distinguish between the needs of racing cars and those of the everyday automobile. The former is simply obsessed with going faster whilst the latter needs to take care of a vast variety of requirements including safety, economy, refinement and environmental protection. If racing provides the technology applicable for road cars then so be it. But you can bet that Ernest Henry did not give a flying f*** about road car applications when he thought of the DOHC engine.

If there is no application for road cars then that too should be alright for in racing we are celebrating the art and science of going faster. Racing really is a two fingered salute to social norms. There is inherently something rough and rebellious about the whole activity.

More than a racing fan, I'm also a car enthusiast. Performance car enthusiast. And when I'm fixing Toda cams, Motec ECUs or HKS exhausts in my car, I really couldn't give a goddamn about bloody fuel consumption or stinking noise levels or indeed the environment. (Though I assure you, otherwise normally I would be deeply concerned about trees and whales). When the Bilstein sports coilovers go on the car I really don't care if you think the ride sucks. The most important thing is how fast she'll do on the Sepang track day.

Fitting high performance parts generally result in better passive safety due to better grip (from the big gumball Michelin Pilot Sport - never Bridgestone), better braking (courtesy of AP Racing or Project Mu - never Brembo) and quicker acceleration but you can bet that safety was furthest away from my mind when I had it installed. A decrease in lap time is my only concern. And if Tein produces a better coilover, then you can bet that I'm going to switch to that. And if my mechanic knows how to tune it to give me greater performance, then I'm surely going to pay him to do it.

Though my exploits on my everday banger are light years removed from Michael Schumacher's Ferrari 248, yet to me this is the spirit of racing. Innovation and development for the quest of speed and beating your rivals. Of course, I'm limited to what I can afford but then that's always the case in any endevour. But nobody tells me that I should not or cannot spend my cash or indeed try to stop me from doing it. Nobody but the bank manager but even he will wait till the balance is severly in debit.

Yet today after more than 100 years, we are experiencing a fundamental shift in racing culture. Increasingly we are seeing some variation of spec formulas in nearly all branches of racing. Spec tyres, spec brakes, spec transmissions not to mention chassis and engines. In the pinnacle of racing, we see a halt to the spirit of innovation (dont' believe me? Simply read the 2006 technical regulations) and in 2008 we will see a halt to the spirit of continous development in engines and in 2009 that will be extended to bodywork and aero.

THAT IS NOT RACING. Its bullshit. Perhaps fans new to the sport will not detect this fundamental shift or in the case of the oft mentioned "casual fan", even care. Perhaps the sport is being catered to and taken over by a new generation of fans or those who think that vibrating wing mirrors represent an unfair aero advantage. Perhaps I'm turning into an old grump who can't move with the times but really I cannot bear to watch any longer.

When they banned active suspension, I thought that was fine. When they took away sliding side skirts I agreed that maybe they were a little too dangerous. When they removed the spectacle of titanium skid plates I thought that maybe it was for the best. But all the while I knew that the engineers will always have something else up their sleeves. But now, even that ability is to be taken away. Crap. It really doesn't matter too much if all these restrictions were applied to the junior formulae or touring cars (however disgusting I think it is) but to apply it to Formula 1, at the very top level simply cannot be tolerated.

For the long term, Max Mosley hopes that his rules (post 2011) will result in Formula 1 being "positioned at the cutting edge of fuel efficiency research and development, demonstrating environmental relevance to the world's policy makers and accelerating environmental benefits for the world's motor consumers." Again, perhaps I am ancient and about to be extinct but for 100 years the emphasis of racing has always been speed, speed and yet more speed. Everything else was secondary. Now it seems the powers deem a cultural shift as a necessity. I'd rather not be a part of that. And for what? To please dirty politicians? Banning SUVs would have a far greater immediate impact on the environment than trying to make racing cars go green. Racing consumes only a tiny proportion of fossil fuels on sale. And racing cars only run for a few hours on the weekend. Limos, SUVs and big barge exec saloons favoured by politicians are on the road day after day, year after year and there are inifinitely more of them on the road and contributing to global warming. Let Formula 1 and racing in general be about racing technology. And let roadcar technologies like hybrids be the domain of company laboratories and soccer mums.

The FIA should not be worried that they have lost this fan but I can assure you that I'm not alone. Plenty of people I know have stopped watching since the World Cup, perhaps never to return. But we came from the old school and as I said, perhaps its time to go. To the next generation, try to have fun then.

Whats most sad is that the FIA isn't the only culprit. The teams, the engine suppliers and manufacturers are also to blame for failing to preserve the spirit of racing in Formula 1. They talked a good fight but at the end of the day, they simply didn't have the minerals to go up against Max and Bernie. Well, the hell with you lot. Le Mans here we come.

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An Unsatisfactory Situation

An Unsatisfactory Situation

  June 02, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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Finally the FIA, read Max Mosley has finally decided to name the members of the Formula 1 commission. In the past, all teams had representation, together with a representative of an engine manufacturer, a tyre maker, Bernie, Max and a couple of promoters. Now he's decided to change the make up of the commission, insisting that the FIA has always been about countries. So now, we have representatives from various countries in the form of teams and promoters. Of course, Bernie and Max still retain their votes.

The commission members are as follows:

Teams
Austria : Red Bull Racing (Friend of Max)
France : Renault (Headed by a friend of Max and most likely to leave the GPMA)
Germany: BMW Sauber
Italy : Ferrari ( Big time friend of Max)
Japan : Honda
United Kingdom : Williams (on the fence but probably a friend of Max)

Grand Prix Promoters:
Australia (Friend of Bernie and by association a friend of Max)
Brazil (Would a promoter of a crime infested GP they really go against Max?)
Hungary (No way!)
Monaco (Hmmm.....)
Spain (I guess they all must be friends of Max)

Conspicuosly absent is the the second oldest and most successful team in Formula 1, McLaren. But really, even if they were called to the commission, what difference would it make? Look at the composition. BMW and Honda are probably the only dissenting voice in the commission. Even if all the teams came together, the combination of promoters, Max and Bernie would mean they would simply be shot down. And even if they all unanimously agreed a motion against Max, the dictator would have it overruled by the World Motorsport Commission, where they are all Max's spineless bitches. Yes, the championship may belong to the FIA but aren't the teams fielding just about all the money to compete and make the championship happen in the first place? This is some bullshit. In addition, as Racefax correctly pointed out, if Max Mosley claims that he wants to stand up for the rights of the independent teams, why aren't more of them on this so called commission?

Ideally, they should just dispense with this multilevel process of making the rules. At the moment, the process is majority vote at the Sporting Working Group, then another vote at the F1 Commission and finally the WMSC. Why the need for such a long winded process and why the hell should bloody promoters be involved in setting the regulations? Throw it all out. I'd rather have a single committee fielded by all the teams, all the independent engine manufacturers like Cosworth, additional votes given to a manufacturer for each non-works team they supply and all the tyre manufacturers (if more than one). And yeah, we can throw a couple of votes and seats to Max and Bernie to save face. All decisions made by simple majority. Now that'd get things moving along in a fair manner by the people who actually make the entire show happen. And of course, no prima donna Italian team could then throw its pompous weight around.

I'm starting to get really disillusioned about Formula 1. Sure, Formula 1 today is far removed from the one I started watching years and years ago. The inevitable march of time cannot be stopped and of course, things must evolve, that's just life. But all along, the spirit, the soul of sport has remained largely intact. But that spirit has started to leave. I think it happened a couple of years ago when the most restrictive set of engine regulations yet seen were proposed and is now being run. It happened when the single tyre per weekend regulation was introduced. It happened when the two race engine regulation were implemented.

In the FIA fan survey last year, the majority of participants indicated that technical innovation was a major factor attracting fans to the sport. But with these regulations we have today, to be made even more restrictive in 2008, where is the innovation going to come from? There is little or no scope for it. And even if geniuses like Adrian Newey (yes, I still believe in superstar designers) had an epiphany and produce something spectacular, the FIA have already indicated within the rules that such innovations will be banned.

I can't help but think that if aluminium honeycomb monocoques or spaceframes were still in use today and someone suddenly thought of using carbon fibre, you can bet that Max would have it banned. He'd have it banned under the heading of "cost," regardless of any safety or innovative advantages it would confer.

The media scream for greater levels of marketing and promotion for the sport. All very well. But just look at the product. I've always believed that if you make a superior product, marketing issues are strictly secondary. Or in the case of Google (when it first began), absolutely superfluous. I for one, was not attracted to watch the sport more than 20 years ago by stupid marketing gimmicks. I started watching because the cars were bloody quick, the drivers were superhuman and reading and discovering the technology behind it all was absolutely fascinating. The product was high tech and it had bags of character. Human character. Drivers walloped one another when they got miffed and everyone said what they meant and meant what they said. Team owners included. It was competition. It was battle. It was bloody fun to watch. Nowadays..... well, you know the drill.

So, we have crappy regulations that will soon get even crappier. And with Max ruling the roost and with everyone including the media so afraid of speaking up, absolutely no way to changing them. Go ahead then. Promote it to death. Formula 1 will need all the marketing gimmicks and gloss for it to sell.

Jeez, I think I've said all of this so many times, I'm getting so sick about writing about it as well. In all my years of watching this sport, I've never had so many bad things to say about it. The situation sucks with a capital "S".

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Monaco GP

Monaco GP

  May 28, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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No one expects any overtaking to happen on the narrow streets of Monte Carlo. Given that lack of expectation, one could then simply enjoy the race which was in fact quite exciting to watch. Or at least until Kimi Raikkonen and Mark Webber retired. Up until then, they were giving the world champion a helluva run for his money. I think if Michael were in the mix today, he could have taken all of them.

Its funny this circuit. You watch cars following one another nose to tail and it seems that even on the faster bits of the circuit through the tunnel, later on at Tabac and the swimming pool, the cars seem to have no problems at all following the car in front. At some stages Kimi Raikkonen looked like he would crash into Fernando Alonso's gearbox. I suspect that had this been a touring car race, some nudging would not go amiss. But the fragile wings and bodywork of a Formula 1 car simply would not do.

I'm not sure why that is. Perhaps because on this circuit the wings are set at their maximum angles and somehow are not so sensitive to the dirty air in the wake of another car. Perhaps the turns are simply too slow to create much turbulence in the first place. But I couldn't help but feel that if the circuit were just a little bit wider, there would be more of the brake locking tyre smoking lunges that Giancarlo Fisichella and Michael Schumacher made during the course of their progress. But then again, if the circuit were any wider the turns would be faster and there goes the aero once more.

Starting on pole with Michael nowhere near him, you felt it was always going to be Alonso's race. But Kimi I thought had a definite chance of winning had that safety car not come out. As Dennis would say in the McLaren press release, he had more fuel in the tanks than Alonso did. A lot more.

Praise must also go to Mark Webber for driving a brilliant race. He too was going very quickly and fully deserved at least a podium spot. David Coulthard I thought drove solidly but was hampered by the mobile road block named Rubens Barrichello. Later on his speed was not very apparent as the Red Bull team had switched him from a two stop strategy to just a single stop and he was carrying a lot of fuel. Had he been able to execute the two stop strategy I'd bet he would have been right up there with Montoya at least if not kissing the gearbox of Mark Webber.

Sneaky Schumi in fact drove a faultless race and ended up quite a brilliant fifth despite starting at the very back on a circuit with few overtaking options. Jenson Button in fact wilted under Scumi's pressure and had to give way. But his teammate Rubens, still smarting from last year, would give Michael no room at all. But Michael's speed today was undeniable. His fastest lap way faster than that of Kimi Raikkonen's.

As I said, given the lack of expectation of any overtaking, watching the traffic jams in Monaco was actually fun. Witness David Coulthard for instance who was simply all over the place trying to keep Michael behind him in the middle of the race. Limited opportunities perhaps but a driver still needs to keep the line covered just in case.

Strategy is everything on these streets. And it would have been interesting to have seen how it would all pan out after the second stops. In the end, reliability won the day for Alonso. This level of completeness, the blend of speed, tactics and reliability (and now it seems, fair play) from Alonso and the Renault team are what will win Alonso the championship for the second time.

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Did He, Didn't He

Did He, Didn't He

  May 28, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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My first reaction to Michael Schumacher's stall at Rascasse was thinking how convenient it was for the German. With everyone on their second balls out run, here was a situation that would help him enormously. Yellow flags out, the other drivers, like it or not, will inevitably be delayed at the turn. And indeed, more than one had to take a tighter line into the corner. That included Fernando Alonso who was at that time, going a great deal quicker than Michael through the first two sectors. Fernando missed it by only a few hundredths but that delay was enough to ensure that the Ferrari starts at the front.

A few minutes later I got an SMS from a mate of mine who suggested in no uncertain terms that the off was very deliberate. Well, being conspiracy theorists that I am, I agreed. Look carefully at the video replays. Going into the left hander it seemed that he went in there a little too quickly, braked hard, locked up, recovered but conveniently ran out of room at the exit. He stopped and stalled. Hmmm.... stalled or did he hit the kill switch? I mean, I've seen this guy go off in the kitty litter at the Nurburgring but kept the engine on and got a nice little (doubtful) push from the marshals. So it was certainly convenient that his engine decided at this moment to cough and splutter to a stop. Whether or not this is deliberate I certainly have no experience to say.

However, gamesmanship is not beyond both Ferrari and Michael Schumacher. Perhaps the Ferrari pits did not tell him to do so but heh, Michael is not exactly lacking in grey matter is he? The effect of his "enthusiasm" was to delay the other drivers and one could argue that it delayed them in a most unfair manner.

Reports have it that the entire paddock was up in arms with the incident and no doubt the protest was a result of this discontent. But as I said before, it was certainly convenient for Michael. There are of course other places that would have achieved the same delaying effects but Rascasse is probably the best place. Narrow, very tight and in actual fact quite easy to go off there.

Well, in the end the stewards after careful consideration over 8 hours decided to penalize Michael. I don't know what Pitpass is on about though. A Black Day for Formula 1? Not everybody would be displeased by this really. As I said, Ferrari have had their fair share of gamesmanship in the past and its high time someone put paid to their underhanded tactics. If indeed it was proven so.

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There May Be Trouble Ahead

There May Be Trouble Ahead

  May 15, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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Well, it was always going to happen wasn't it? The Sporting Working Group voted over the weekend to scrap the engine homologation rules but unsurprisingly, this has now been rejected" by Max Mosley. According to Max: "By entering the championship, a team accepts the regulations as published and, of equal importance, is entitled to rely on them when deciding whether or not to enter." Thats true enough and sounds reasonable. But then, errr.... whats the point of the Sporting Working Group Max?

It seems that Max is going out of his way to protect the interests of the minority here. The SWG motion was passed by majority vote with Ferrari, the two Red Bull teams and Prodrive voting against. Significantly, independents Super Aguri, Midland and Williams voted for the motion. Max Mosley cites spiralling costs as a reason to overrule the SWG together with protecting those teams that had entered the championship on the basis of the published rules. Funny how the 3 independents didn't seem to be very concerned by "costs."

Its also very significant that Max Mosley had said that he would stand by whatever changes and proposals were made by the SWG. Well, looks like he's gone back on his word saying that teams entered the 2008 world championship agreed to abide by the rules as published.

And this will greatly upset the manufacturers. Do I hear the sound of MOU pages being ripped apart? Its a real pity. The SWG process provided a mechanism to decide on the rules in a very fair manner. In the words of Ron Dennis, it was a very democratic process. After years and years of requiring a unanimous decision to change anything (as required by the Concorde Agreement) here was a way to ensure that things got done and done in a proper manner.

Well, it looks like it was all for show. I guess Max was hoping the SWG would publicly reaffirm his position and show people that he can be a reasonable man. But in the face of a major U-turn by the majority, he's gone and shown his true colours once more. Quite where this leaves Formula 1 is anybody's guess.

An excellent article appears on GrandPrix.com explaining the issue in greater detail. And if you receive Racefax, you should check out the latest in your mailbox.

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Peace In Formula 1?

Peace In Formula 1?

  May 15, 2006    MamaeyaYT

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One of the biggest news over the weekend in Barcelona was the announcement that the GPMA have signed a memorandum of understanding with CVC affirming their commitment to Formula 1 in 2008 and beyond. Perhaps prompted by this announcement, Renault themselves have confirmed their commitment to race at least until 2012.

"Peace In Our Time," declared ITV-F1. GrandPrix.com. "Peace breaks out in Formula 1" ran the proud headline on GrandPrix.com. A sentiment echoed pretty much everywhere in the media. Well, the racing media at least.

If I had a dollar for every MOU I've seen that in the end never amounted to anything..... An MOU really means bugger all if you ask me. In my experience its just a piece of paper that says hey we've met and talked a bit about this venture. It looks interesting so, lets we work together to make it happen. We'll spend time drawing up the legal paperwork and discussing the commercial agreement.

And that's basically it. You can't enforce an MOU in court and the parties can walk away anytime they want. Its a nice gesture but really corporations walk away from MOUs all the bloody time. So I wouldn't be too quick to say that peace has arrived. Not until there actually exists an actual legal document that has been signed by all the parties involved. It seems extraordinarily naive for the racing media to make such claims of peace in the meantime.

However, in related news this weekend was the inaugural meeting of the Sporting Working Group at Barcelona. The group is made up of representatives of all the teams competing in the 2008 world championship. This group includes Prodrive. It was significant because it can be considered a success by the GPMA. The way it works these days (at least for 2008) is that rather than requiring unanimous decision among the teams before a regulation is adopted, nowadays a majority vote is enough.

It should be noted that one of Max Mosley's complaints was that the technical directors can never agree on anything. Not a hundred percent true. I can recall plenty of times when they did agree on a regulation with the exception of a single interloper among their ranks. The guilty party? You guessed it. Ferrari. Take these V8s they run these days. If the teams had their way, it would have been law since 1989 when turbos were banned and engines had to be normally aspirated. But those smart alec boys from Maranello wanted to run V12s so it had to be dropped. Same thing with refuelling. Those V12s are thirsty little buggers. In fact, the teams were all shouting for a single tyre manufacturer not long ago. Only Ferrari dissented.

The majority rule in fact is a real godsend and should pave the way for quicker resolution of technical regulations. And the GPMA teams, joined by Williams used it to great effect last weekend.

First the proposal for increasing the engine homologation period from 3 to 5 years was rejected by a vote of 8-4. The four in support being the "Friends of Max" brigade that is Ferrari, Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Prodrive. Nice to see that good old Frank decided to go with the GPMA, despite the fact that he's signed up with Bernie. Surprisingly, Midland also joined up on the side of the GPMA. Perhaps Shnaider is not so useless after all but then again, he's running Toyota engines which might explain things.

Second, the proposal for penalty ballasts in place of the current penalty of grid positions were also rejected by majority vote. Third, everyone agreed on standard ECUs to be used for testing and racing.

Then Ron Dennis decided to propose that engine homologation be trashed altogether. And this was supported by the GPMA teams, Super Aguri, Midland and Williams with the Friends of Max voting against. Now thats a GPMA victory in my book.

But ultimately the FIA have the power, through various commitees such as the kangaroo World Council, to veto any motion that it decides as being against the interest of the sport. Now there's the big catch. I can forsee it now. The teams decide on a regulation. Ferrari doesn't like it and makes a call to Max who decides to veto the whole damn thing. Putting that aside for the moment, nearly everything the FIA proposed has now been washed aside by the SWG. As Pitpass notes, will Max accept that?

Well I think he better. Otherwise the GPMA teams will be the first to rip that MOU up and shove it up his ass. But if he does accept everthing the SWG decides I think the GPMA will fall over themselves to sign whatever commercial agreement CVC, FOM and the FIA come up with. Over to you Max.

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