Montezemolo resurrects F1 breakaway threat

F1 Fanatic round-up

Posted on

| Written by

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo says the teams are still willing to set up their own series.

Also in today’s round-up Robert Kubica has a seat fitting at Renault and a new section in the F1 Fanatic Forum.

Links

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo urges F1 power brokers to share more of the spoils with teams (Daily Telegraph)

“Currently Montezemolo said he could envisage three scenarios. Firstly, that teams stick with Formula One’s current rights holders, private equity firm CVC Capital Partners for whom F1 commercial rights holder Bernie Ecclestone works. Secondly, that they find new owners but stick with ‘the same business model’. And finally, that the teams break away and promote their own series ‘like they do in the NBA’.”

Ferrari: Drivers start on equal footing (Autosport)

“In the second half of the season we have to be prepared in a very open way, but in the first part of the season it is in the interest of the team to put both drivers in the best situation.”

Fernandes ‘bullied’ in Lotus row (BBC)

“I’ve never seen such a barrage of comments from a group of people. It has annoyed me. It’s a little bit of bully-boy tactics.”

In defence of Tony Fernandes (again) (Joe Saward)

“In the last few days I have read a great deal from Group Lotus and others about Fernandes being a bad guy. And I long ago learned that one needs to always consider the source before getting upset about what they say. Dany Bahar is a man who I have heard NOTHING good about.”

Legard exit and replacement to be confirmed by BBC (Crash.net)

“We have learned from a source close to Legard that the former Radio 5 Live man’s contract will not be renewed into 2011.”

Robert visits Enstone (Renault F1 Team)

“After trying the car for size, Robert headed over to the wind tunnel to see the guys who are currently working on the designs that will be on the car in Bahrain next March. He had a chat with the guys for a progress report and inspected the latest version of the model. As you’d expect, photos were strictly off limits.”

Romain back testing for Pirelli in F1 (Gravity Sports Management)

“Today we managed to complete 61 laps in the 2009 Toyota F1 car and we learned some interesting things. We did quite a mixed programme, including some short runs and longer runs to learn about the compounds. Already I can feel an improvement compared with the last test I did for Pirelli at Monza.”

Red Bull Champion (Car-a-day)

J-Canada, who was the runner-up in the 2010 F1 Fanatic Predictions Championship, has picked his prize courtesy of Rob Ijbema at Car-a-Day – this portrait of Sebastian Vettel.

Also, the Autocourse annuals for the runners-up have arrived and will be dispatched just as soon as I can find enough packing material and lug them down to the post office!

Comment of the day

Here’s an interesting question from Calum. If you know the answer, please post in the comments…

I was wondering, at the start of every GP the home national anthem is played, so for the Valencian race held in Spain, raced as the European GP – did they play the Spanish anthem -‘La Marcha Real’ – or the anthem of Europe – ‘Ode to Joy?’
Calum

From the forum

With so many threads started about different racing games I’ve set up a new section of the forum just for them: F1 games.

Happy birthday!

A very happy birthday today to Dave Mitchell and kate!

On this day in F1

Stirling Moss triumphed in the 1960 Cape Grand Prix, held on this day 50 years ago at the Killarney circuit.

Driving a Formula Two Porsche he led home Jo Bonnier, in a second Porsche, and Wolfgang von Trips in a Lotus.

Image © Ferrari spa

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

Got a potential story, tip or enquiry? Find out more about RaceFans and contact us here.

116 comments on “Montezemolo resurrects F1 breakaway threat”

  1. Does anybody else find it strange that Luca is suggesting the teams leave because they are not getting enough money when Ferrari automatically gets more than anyone else at the end of the year because of the historic multiplier that takes a team’s history into account when paying out television rights?

    1. That is a bit strange. Perhaps he want’s to negotiate a larger percentage than currently.

    2. I find it strange that you prefer to rant on an on about Ferrari rather then just agree that formula one has turned into a money making business for CVC and Bernie.

      1. Maybe it has, but I could understand the rant if it was one of the smaller teams compaining about it. I’m pretty sure that Ferrari sixty-year history means that they’d get paid about the same amount from FOM as the World Constructors’ Champions even if they came dead last in the championship. Ferrari jsut have to show up and FOM accounts for a decent portion of their budget – and they’re complaining that they’re not getting enough? Meanwhile, you’ve got Virgin and Hispania who won’t be getting anything from FOM because they came 11th and 12th in the championship, while Ferrari complains about them being too slow. I’m sorry if you think that I’d rather get stuck into Ferrari than Bernie, but Ferrari are having their “Let them eat cake!” moment.

        1. Prisoner Monkey’s has made some excellent points.

          To add to it, when Ferrari claim to have the best interests of the sport in their heart (like the linked article suggests) it needs to be considered what Ferrari considers the best interests of the sport to be; which may well differ from what the average fan or even the other team owners consider to be in the best interest of the sport.

          1. Ah the whole spectacle is a mess compared to what it should be. Apparently it is a sport, yet I don’t know any other sport is the world where the sportsmen are such an insignificant factor in the grand picture of it all.

            Heck if I won the lottery tomorrow I could pay my way into GP2 for a year and then pay for an F1 seat, and would then fall under the banner of the “22 best drivers in the world”. Name another sport where thats the case.

            Moan, criticism, rumours, moan, moan, scandal, race, driver quote, moan, moan, moan, rumours, moan – the cycle can get pretty irritating after a while. If you didn’t notice theres a race somewhere in the middle there.

          2. Montezemolo turns F1 political posturing into an art form. All you have to do is look up when ‘crunch’ meetings of FIA/FOTA are due and, right on cue, the canary sings.

            Same song, same themes, same total disingenuousness. Good old Luca. Always good for a laugh.

        2. Montezemolo has a point though. Currently a high percentage of the money made by F1 is going to a bunch of men who are not working for that money. A vast majority of the money should be going to the teams, enough so that the smaller teams get a half decent share share even when coming second last.

          The more money that stays in F1, the less need for fakes, such as pay drivers. It will benefit the sport at the end of the day, and that is what I think Montezemolo wants. For him it is more important to have all round sustainability for the teams, than having a larger budget at Ferrari, because if the teams start failing again, the sport hurts, and if the sport hurts, then Ferrari hurts.

          1. Agree. I was disappointed that they didn’t beak away earlier. Just imagine if the teams shared all the money: no more stupid cost cutting rules, and hopefully, no prescribed engine configuarations! Hopefully, they’ll go this time—and the name Formula One will become worthless and they’ll be able to buy it from Bernie for USD $2.00!

          2. I agree, the idea of all the money being used for the good of the sport is brilliant.

            But it’s not possible. There are too many people with large egos who put personal power in front of the good of the sport.

            In this I include Luca, I’m sorry, but if repeatedly threatening to take Ferrari out of the sport isn’t bringing the sport into disrepute I don’t know what is.

            I would have respect for the person making these comments if it was Peter Sauber, or Colin Kolles. People with real money concerns. But it’s not, it’s the head of the wealthiest team. I’ll just point out at this point, That if Luca was doing for the sports mutual benefit, he A) would also be suggesting the money is shared equally, and B) rather than threatening, would be asking or suggesting.

            I loved Ferrari, I really did… But Luca is a parasite with an enlarged Ego, and I can’t respect him for playing for power at the sports and other peoples expense. Another Flavio.

            One day, F1 will be run on comparable budgets, and will be an example of sportsmanship and competitive excellence. as it used to be.

        3. I am pretty sure this is one of the steps building up to the negotiations for the new condord agreement with FOM/CVC.

          But still I very much agree with you, that hearing this come from Ferrari, who are getting a lot more then any other team is, feels funny.

          Then again, we must probably be happy if Ferrari sticks with the other FOTA teams and does not let FIA and FOM play them out against each other.

    3. You know what I find strange…

      The last four round-ups all had a headline that either included Luca, Stefano, or team orders, and in three of those four round ups you took the opportunity to bash Ferrari.
      I always appreciated this site for the minimal amount of Fanboyism but during the off season it’s getting hard to read this stuff.

      If you read the article again and replace the words ‘Luca’ with ‘Martin’ and ‘Dimontezemolo’ with ‘Whitmarsh’ it would simply be an article about a team principal stating the same thing most F1 fans have been saying for several years. The teams deserve more money and hopefully one day can turn a profit. Take the hate glasses off for the love of god!

      1. Yeah, but then it wouldn’t be Ferrari and Dimontezemolo moaning yet again would it? So there’d be nothing to bash.

      2. The reason why I bash Ferrari is because they do or say something to deserve it. Like this: whinging that they’re not being paid enough by FOM when they’d get more money than anyone else just by showing up with a pair of Segways.

        1. I didn’t see that in the article. Are you getting that from somewhere else?

          1. It’s well-known that there is an “historic multiplier” that is factored into the payment of television rights to the teams. Teams that have a significant history attached to them – mostly Ferrari, McLaren and Williams – get more money than they would normally get because of the historic value of their teams.

          2. Well, PM, you seem to have a “historical multiplier” in your comments! You didn’t read this particular article, did you?

          3. Well, PM, you seem to have a “historical multiplier” in your comments! You didn’t read this particular article, did you?

            Yes, I did. And it’s pretty clear what Ferrari wants: more power. If the breakway series (“Formula Elaborate Bluff”) goes ahead, Ferrari will be the ones to lead the way. If the Powers That Be bend to their demands, the other teams will get more money because of Ferrari’s actions, which means that Ferrari will have a massive favour to call in. Either way, Ferrari will get a massive boost politically. And that’s what they care about. That’s all they care about – they want to shape the future of the sport. The problem is that they’re not the people we should entrust that to because they will look out for themselves before anyone else.

          4. Review Bernies comments in some of the articles printed before the signing of the concorde agreement. He stated that Ferrari (and only Ferrari) was given extra money to sign the previous agreement.

        2. Really?

          First he said that the ‘Teams’ should get more money. Then he said the cost of going to a grand prix was too high for most true fans, then he said that F1 should try to retain it’s Historic races, followed by a him saying that he didn’t agree with the 4 cylinder turbos but decided to go with it anyway.

          And from that you got whinging for more money??

          1. Ferrari’s behaviour – repeatedly threatening to quit, their veto over the rules, their criticism of the new teams, their liberal use of team orders, etc. – has made it pretty clear that they only care about themselves. If they say they are speaking on behalf of all teams, you can bet that they’re getting something out of it and that they’ll probably be the ones to benefit the most out of it. Ferrari wil never back something that is “for the good of the sport” unless it helps them out, because Ferrari believe that they are the sport. That’s why they kept threatening to quit last year: they believed that Formula 1 would not be Formula 1 without Ferrari. The old adminstration is largely to blame for this, largely because they let Ferrari get too comfortable. It is known that the FIA once gave Ferrari one-off payment worth eighty million dollars just to keep them in the sport – and that was on top of their cut of the commercial rights and the historic multiplier, which were both at their maximum because Ferrari had won the World Championship. The FIA basically paid for Ferrari’s entire season, and the attitude hasn’t changed. To quote George Orwell, all of the animals are equal – but some of the animals (at least to Ferrari) are more equal than others.

          2. Love is Blind; Hatred is deaf.
            Authour unknown

          3. I’ve got a quote for you, too: actions speak louder than words. I’m sorry if you can’t see it, but for the past decade, Ferrari have had a self-serving agenda. It’s in everything they do. Re-read the aticle and try and prise your way through the subtext. For everything Luca says, ask yourself this: what’s in it for Ferrari? There is always something.

          4. PM you are very short sighted when it comes to Ferrari.

            They are using their position in F1 to lobby on behalf of all the other teams. Do you honestly thing the other teams disagree with him asking that the teams get more money? No, they dont. They completely agree with him. Unfortunately for them they cannot risk saying anything, and so Ferrari is their saviour.

        3. Take a chill pill dude, stop being so negative about everything.

          Sure Ferrari will push for a bigger slice, who wouldnt?

          1. and it makes it okay that it’s expected for them to ask for more? It does not take away from the fact that they are being greedy. I agree with PM that Ferrari has turned into a self absorbed giant that places more importance on itself than there really is.

          2. I think we all know the man is an internet warrior. Where there is conflict on f1fanatic, there is PM…..draw your own conclusions. God rested on day 7, he didn’t create PM.

            If there was a like/dislike option for each comment on this site I would be the proud recipient of comment of the year.

      3. Agreed Cacarella.

        Last 3-4 round-up headlines have all been to insinuate the reader against Ferrari. Sometimes I wonder who is doing the round-ups – Keith or Prisoner Monkeys.

        1. I think when Ferrari is constantly dishing out the headline fodder, it’s hard NOT to have such a regular appearance about their arrogance.

        2. Ferrari have done quite a few media briefings these past few days and there’s not much else going on this time of year – apart from the Lotus story, and a lot of us are pretty bored of that too.

          As for “Last 3-4 round-up headlines have all been to insinuate the reader against Ferrari”, that is simply not the case. This isn’t even a Ferrari story, really, it’s a FOTA story.

          1. So why is it that it becomes a Ferrari story???
            Keithy boy, ah?
            The more I read this site the more I see venom out of PM and the Keith against Ferrari.
            God knows that is all have they have. Bitterness.

          2. To be honest the only venom I see on this site is usually coming from the keyboards of the passionate Ferrari fan, and to be honest I don’t understand why you Ferrari guys like to feel so hard done by – F1 gives Ferrari a pretty good deal.

          3. So why is it that it becomes a Ferrari story?

            I’m not the one saying it is so I can’t answer that.

        3. Sounds Like Luca and Ferrari to me. Such a vulgar and sophmoric display of power. Ferrari knows that F1 will remain under FIA and FOM so enough of all the talk.

        4. The last four headlines have all even been quotes or statements of fact about what either di Montezemolo or Domenicali has said over the last few days. I personally have not seen any bias in the headlines, and as Keith says, it really is the only worthwhile news at the moment. Any idea that these headlines are against Ferrari are entirely in your own head.

      4. I think the reason for this is that this is the only news around – unless you want to hear more about Lotus :) – and Ferrari have just had their press meeting so there are lots of stories and interviews centered around Ferrari.

      5. Maybe Keith’s site should be called McLaren Fanatic instead of F1 Fanatic. Ferrari doesn’t stand a chance around here.

        1. Again, see my explanation above.

  2. Great! Go for it! Go set up your own series, Luca, and I’ll be glad to turn my back and not watch you. I’d rather enjoy a series with teams that allow their drivers to race, rather than predeciding the finish order among drivers who are still in a close championship race.

    1. Here we are again…same old story Are we talking at Germany 2010 or gemany 2008?

      1. Why not both!! Lets bash both ferrari and Mclaren about teams orders. If all teams had the mentality of ferrari from 2010 (moving drivers/influencing the result of a race when BOTH drivers are still in the championship) then next year there will only be 12 drivers that are actually racing, and the other 12 are just supporting! How crap is that. Its like the 3 car thing! Whats the point in having 3 car teams when they dont let 2 cars race each other. Or is it that they want to have 2 cars supporting Alonso, just to take more points away from the other teams? I am not a ferrari hater, but I dont like the direction the sport is currently going in. Red Bull proved that you dont need team orders to win a championship, so they should have just banned them outright! Could you imagine how good all the races would be if they were like turkey 2010 where Lewis and Jenson had a ding dong (without crashing lol!!)

  3. So David Coulthard is replacing Legard?

    1. if you can trust crash.net..
      i probably would’ve rathered charlie cox, but eh.

      1. I wouldn’t trust crash.net to tie their shoe laces to be honest.

        Until the BBC confirm anything to do with next years TV/Radio line-ups this is pure speculation. They also nicked the story from the Daily Mail, which should tell you more than you need to know about the credibility.

    2. that sounds pretty good to me. you’re not going to find 2 more knowledgeable guys with good personalities like them.

    3. It would by fine by me, but for some reason it seems to be a big no-no to have “dead air” during the commentary, therefore they will look for some annoying flibbertigibbet to yap on endlessly, hardly letting Brundle get a word in edgeways. :(

      All I want is a commentary team to talk about the action on track – especially during qualifying. Instead we’ll see a driver miss an apex or whatever and it will be completely ignored in favour of some boring anecdote or theory which has no relation to the TV pictures.

    4. Legard is gone…. thats good enough for me! Sorry but the guy had no feel for the sport and little to no understanding of the intricacies that make it such a riveting sport to watch.

      DC replacing him…. Not sure about that, DC will have to prove himself upto the job, but I can’t imagine that he could be any worse than legard at his best (which was basically him talking and me not wanting to smash things). Give him a few races and then judge is my attititude.

      1. I don’t care who it is as long as he/she doesn’t think pitlane gossip should take precedence over whats going on in front of their eyes.

  4. I just googled Ode to Joy. This is what came up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpcUxwpOQ_A Someone please invite the muppets to perform this at the next European GP!

    (oh, and I don’t know the answer, but I suspect they just play the Spanish anthem)

    1. Apparently they did play Ode to Joy in 2010

      http://live.autosport.com/commentary.php/id/240

      See 11:46am

      1. … followed by the Spanish national anthem.

    2. No, they should do it in the next Die Hard film. The series can’t get any worse than Live Free o Die Hard … can it?

      1. Wait, I just had a better idea … the Muppets performing Ode to Joy at the European Grand Prix in a Die Hard film!

        How can this possibly go wrong?

        1. That’s perfect! The movie starts with some supervillain doing something really evil while John Mclane and his granddaughter are watching the muppets at the European GP!

          That would be a very cool movie, as long as they don’t show actual racing footage from Valencia…

          1. Yeah but they could give it the Hollywood treatment like they did the Formula Whatever-It-Was-Supposed to be in Ironman2…

          2. Come to think of it, this year’s European GP was a little Hollywoodish, what with Webber running into Kovalainen, and Alonso throwing a fit after the race :D

    3. Just to be clear though, Europe does not have an anthem.
      “Ode to Joy” was adopted as the anthem of the EU, but the EU is not Europe.

      1. Of course not. It’s the European Commission and Council of Ministers that’s Europe.

  5. Have to say that I’m noticing the constant drip of news that seems bias against Ferrari.

    Perhaps it’s just a series of slow news days during the off-season but it’s starting to get a little predictable.

    1. Or maybe it’s because Ferrari are running around mouthing off, while the rest of the teams have their heads down, bums up working away at next years cars.

      1. I would bet more on this.

    2. No, it’s Luca opening his mouth.

    3. wot we have to remember that in italian newspapers there is a story on ferrari every day…they have to have something to write in the off-season and that’s where Luca comes into play while the rest of the team workon next years car.

  6. F1 = Ferrari & vice versa.
    Though F1 w/o Ferrari won’t be F1 anymore, but Ferrari w/o F1 will still be Ferrari!!! :)

    Thought I could share some facts… ;)

    1. both would be damaged without each other – financially and in quality. there are several teams committed to competing at a very high level, and to diminish the competition is to diminish the value of the achievement.

      although i like the sound of team ownership of the league, whichever course they take doesn’t really matter. as long as ferrari, mclaren and the gang are going wheel to wheel, i’ll watch it.

      1. good post Yankee….sums it all up really, its all about the racing….and the quality. #:)

    2. In that case, you know very little about the difference between a fact and an opinion.

      1. Is that a fact or an opinion? :)

    3. Personally I could do without Ferrari in F1.

      1. Indeed, I dont understand how can Ferrari = F1, the equation stands just like Apple = Fruits?

    4. Fortunately Ferrari can’t do anything until 2014 when the concorde agreement runs out. By that time Luca will be Italian president and F1 will be hosting a race around Hong Kong’s business district. Everyone will have moved on.

  7. This is the same man who wants a three team set up so he can bunce up the other two while demanding a one race per country while trying to demand Ferrari can dominate the Universe an every one shall revolve around He`s Ego testical b*lls*t.Which i dont mind, but after Hock 10 I find it hard to digest that he insists on two tail gunners.

  8. Vitaly Petrov’s official website is reporting that his future will be announced on Wednesday December 22 in Moscow.

    Looks like he’ll be racing with Lotus Renault. I can’t imagine they’d hold a press conference simply to say he will not be racing.

    1. It would be entertaining if he did though! Let’s see if he manages to be more composed next year so that he can actually get a regular performance.

    2. Hmmm….Moscow…aren’t Virgin running with a Russian title sponsor…

      ….just thinking out loud.

  9. What is wrong with Luca all of a sudden? A break away series is every F1 fan’s worst nightmare.If you have a problem then you leave & create your own series with three cars & team orders that everyone will be happy off!

  10. I was at Valencia during the race and I can say that they did play the Spanish anthem, not Ode to Joy.

    1. Technically speaking however, ‘Ode to Joy’ is the anthem of the European Union (the socio-economic and political entity), not of the continent of Europe. On top of that, even my professor on European political integration aknowledges that the existence of such an anthem is pretty much unknown in general terms.

      1. the existence of such an anthem is pretty much unknown in general terms.

        I hope that your professor didn’t put it in those words. Maybe: the anthem is not widely known…?

  11. Legard leaving sounds great. It would be even greater if David Croft was replacing him, but DC will do just fine.

    1. The problem with Coulthart is that he can only bring what Brundle has already got, only without the enthusiasm. I stil lwelcome the change though.

      And against all my expectations DC was surprisingly good as pundit alongside Jake (who is phenomenal) and has only improved since. I wouldn’t mind if they keep Coulthart where he is and go for another commentator though.

      I liked James Allen’s ability to read the race. He kept an eye on strategy better than Brundle ever could, although with refueling gone that’s less relevant. Still, two drivers… not sure.

      Great news they’re replacing Legard though. BBC coverage has been a real treat for us Dutchies, but he was agonizing to listen to, to the point he often got me out of otherwise good races.

    2. I never thought David Croft would be tempted to join the TV crew… His talent lies in explaining what the listener can’t see. I had to listen to the 2010 Chinese GP on the radio (stood on the roof of a canal boat!) and I got such a good idea of how the race unfolded and was quite suprised how much less dramatic it seemed when I watched it back on iplayer later. The final laps with Hamilton closing down on JB were nail biting on the radio, but Legard and Brundle made very little of it on the TV broadcast.

      I myself became tired of Legard by the end. I didn’t dislike him as much as some others, but every time I hear him say ‘He’s gone right up there!’ over the clip of Webber’s Valencia flight, I cringe. I’m very fond of DC, and hope he does well. I suspect he’ll take a little while to settle in to the role, but I fear less generous F1 fans (none of this site’s followers, I’m sure!) will be aiming slings and arrows by lap 2 of the first GP of 2011.

  12. I think that Montezemolo, as well as Domenicalli, have mistaken the “F” in “F1” to mean “Ferrari”.
    Formula 1 would be a better place if they just kept their egocentric mouths closed once in a while since the Pope hasn’t declared them oracle-of-the-world. Or did I miss that dispensation buried beneath all that pedophilia stuff?

  13. Seems like the silly season in F1 started early this year…

    1. couldn’t agree more

  14. Is Luca drunk or stupid?

    Using the NBA as an example shows he’s just ignorant. The NBA are about to lose the whole of next season to a owners lockout because they think the team owners don’t get enough while the players are paid too much (by the same owners).
    If they do that they will lose their fans. If you honestly think F! fans are going to accept millionaires bitching about how poor they are you really need to step out of the ivory tower Luca.

    1. Don’t worry. The smart money is on Bernie and the teams finding a new owner for FOM (with the emirate of Abu Dhabi tipped to be the premier candidate for that) to continue with a larger revenue share for the teams.

  15. Oh God, here we go again!

    Why is it that Luca seems to always have the need to speak out about things like this? He’s not even President of FOTA any more fer chris-sakes!

    As for a ‘breakaway’ series. Well, he would like that now the RRA (resource restriction agreement) has got him spending less money than he would have been doing under Moseley’s ‘budget cap’. LOL

  16. “Legard exit” YYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  17. I am sick to death of Luca di Montezemolo and all of his ridiculous proposals and statements. I really don’t like this man. :(

  18. Luca wants more money. Pope also confirmed Catholic.

    What should really change is the way money is awarded. For a start, there should be absolutely zero reward for winning the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships beyond the glory. These guys are earning enough money for something they love doing, why they should receive extra for success is beyond me. The money saved should instead be split amongst all the teams to help them avoid having to take pay drivers for the sake of money and struggling day by day with their finances.

    I agree with Luca that too much money comes out of F1 but what would happen with it if it stayed? Their bank accounts, that’s where. Instead of CVC taking less money and it going to the teams, it should be going to a fund to help struggling circuits pay their bills, starting with historic venues and the ones that regularly pack in 90%+ capacity, with precedence given to those with greater capacity over smaller ones.

    1. Now that is a good idea!

      Just as Ferrari, Monza, Spa, Suzuka, Silverstone and Monaco should be kept for the sports at all costs.

      1. I knew it!
        Interlagos, Montreal.
        How could I?

        Now Interlagos doesn’t start with M or S, but it does fit well within the heritage.

        (thanks for matt88, for unknowingly reminding me)

        1. hehe, i don’t know how i could help you.

          however, if you call it Sao Paulo, you’ll have your S. :)

    2. Absolutely, priority number one to preserve the status of F1 is historic race tracks. That is more important than anything.

      1. And Melbourne! I think we should protect that race at all costs too.

  19. I think Luca is very reasonable.
    He just wants to get the best for his team.

    And also I want to share this link with you. I know there are some people over here, who don’t like him, but Joe Saward has another view on the ‘breakaway story’:

    Luca di Montezemolo’s media gathering the other day in Italy resulted in some headlines about the potential for a Formula 1 “breakaway” series. This was largely journalistic spin, as Montezemolo was simply listing the ways in which the commercial structure of the sport could

    develop

  20. Let Ferrari leave. Who cares?
    I grew up watching Ferrari beeing the laughing stock of the field. Team mates retiring a few laps from each other, race after race, while other teams delivered fantastic racing.
    F1 doesn’t need Ferrari.

    1. I agree – too many people (including Ferrari themselves apparently) have carried out an almost Stalinist revision of F1 history and almost convinced everyone that if it wasn’t for Ferrari F1 would never had existed in the first place, and that recently everybody would have deserted it even though in the 80’s they were a joke and their recent success was by recruiting the main factors of Benetton’s success (A private fashion house?! Who are they to set up a racing team?!?).

      Luca needs to put up or shut up; if he really thinks people will watch a one-make ferrari competition (see Superleague formula) then he should just get on with it.

  21. Poor old Legard, completely shafted by Brundle. Legard is a decent reporter just not a good lead commenatator on F1. But its a notoriously difficult sport to commentate on. James Allen took at least 3 years to bed down but in the end his technical knowledge and lack of ego meant he had a great rapport with the peerless Brundle.

    Im not a fan of Coulthard, hes on Red Bulls payroll and he is a co commentator at best, i actually find him a bit dull. Id personally go for JA again. Croft is good but hes a radio reporter, we dont need another chatterbollox on the telly.

    I guess Ej will keep his place but hes frankly a liabilty, its like having Gazza on the team. All a bit wince enducing and you just want him to get through his sentence. Still at least the beeb have acted and hay it could be worse, it couldve been Jim Rosenthal !

    1. I think it is easy to overlook that EJ brings the element of being an insider that only a team owner could have. Despite being out of the role since before Domenicali started running Ferrari he showed no hesitation to collar him after Hockenheim while he was on the phone and demand he answer his questions. He also gets the other team owners to perhaps drop their guard slightly, being interviewed by someone who knows about the pressures the job involves, rather than just a journalist.

      Plus he brings an element of unpredictability and shirts that really shouldn’t be worn on television – I loved it when he had to change shirts halfway through qualifying once because it was strobing on the tv screen!

      1. I agree, Eddie Jordan is usually bizarre, and sometimes more of a nut case than not, But as insider knowledge and entertainment values go, he’s almost peerless.

        I also like James Allen, I love his personality, and his ability to explain technical details clearly, I would like it if they brought him back, but I suspect his chances are slim.

  22. it seems a little strange, in Italy every rant coming out of Monty’s mouth is heard in every sports newspaper/website, but this is not the case. last news about him is his alleged OK to Rome GP, so it seems quite improbable he threatened to leave F1 (it’d surely have been in the headlines).
    By the way, in the Daily Telegraph article there are also some interesting points from Montezemolo:
    – ticket prices (“My son can go around the world with his girlfriend for less than the price of two tickets to Monza”)
    – heritage (“We must keep the historic circuits, like Suzuka, Sao Paulo, Silverstone and Spa.”)

    So, even if you don’t like the man (i’m not a fan of him, as well), try to read what he says beyond the headlines.

  23. “My son can go around the world with his girlfriend for less than the price of two tickets to Monza,”

    I’m guessing his son doesn’t consider the normal tickets worthy… Or he’s getting cheaper flights than I can see on the TV ads.

    But in that one, He’s made a good point. F1 would benefit from having races sold out early, as opposed to tickets being unsold. It would be better for the sports reputation.

    He is also right on the point of cost cutting, it would be fairer if they just put some sort of cap o…. wait…. no… he didn’t like that cost cutting idea either…

  24. Listen everyone OK if Ferrari leaves F1 it won’t be the same. Keith wrote an article just to give update us with the news ok?? The only biased is in the comments people are always having a go at Ferrari. (British Media)

    You never hear anything news like this about Mclaren because the British Media keeps it all hushed up do you think everyone at Mclaren is a God Sent Angel????

  25. I can understand teams wanting more money. My problem is that everyone makes a ton of money already. I’d like to see a little extra money thrown to the new teams in their first three years. Help them get established and more competitive is better for the sport.

    3 car teams is something I just don’t care for. Too much power in a small group of people. It might be interesting IF the third car was owned by a separate group but could use some of the main team resources in developing their car. Maybe get feedback and such here and there while they are learning to walk until they can run.

    I personally would like to see some budget reductions to help make competition a little more closer. It shouldn’t be set to bring the top teams to the bottom teams but I just think there’s too much money spent on things that are irrelevant outside the sport.

    As for a breakaway, teams will come and go. If Ferrari choses to leave, so be it. I don’t think it will crush the sport but it will take one of the top competitors out. Judging by the interest in filling the 13th spot, I think it won’t be hard to replace Ferrari with someone. It’ll just take some time to get them up to speed too. It might improve things a bit to have them gone. It might fail miserably. I doubt it will come to that though.

    I’m really somewhat tired of seeing the Ferrari coverage. I find it just as boring as the Lotus stuff and it’s not like these aren’t point Luca hasn’t already made. I’d rather have silly contests or predictions instead.

  26. Oh go away Montezemolo.

  27. Go Ferrari (ferrari is Enzo Ferrari, not Montezemolo), go Mclaren and go Williams

  28. And please, do not turn F1 circus in a fight between fans. F1 means to me technology and heart first of all. The politics are not well accepted in this motorsport!
    By an italian disappointed fan

  29. It is very interesting what Luca says in the Autosport interview, in the sense that even if they break away he would like Bernie to run the show, rather than some bean counters.
    So, he differentiates Bernie from CVC.This is remarcable and I had not thought about it.
    I have not been a Bernie fan in the past, but appretiate his energy and vey specially his vitality at 81 !!! Please can anyone tell me of any link to info about what he does to keep in shape
    Cheers

  30. Lou, don´t forget to take the show to America sooner or later, with Fast Fred roaring around Indianapolis and also fighting against the Southern Boys in NASCAR in a Chrysler – Ferrari painted in the colors of the Ferrari 512 Sunoco model that Marc Donahue drove.Whith chromed wheels this car could look stunning.
    Much more appealing to sponsors than the Republic of Bacteria F1 GP out in the middle of nowhere.

    Lou should lure Ron to race in America against each others cars, in variuos categories

    YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA RON vs.LOU 15 assaults

    Cheers !

  31. I would just comment, as a lifelong (50 years supporter of F1, controversy, political infighting, intrigue, and Ferrari have always been conjoined. It’s the Old Man’s legacy. I am a Ferrari supporter, but Enzo knew how to twist and tweak everything to his advantage. I could wax lyrical about Ferrari, Renault and Michelin Tyres VS Goodyear back in the day, but it would take many pages, and yes, they totally bent the rules to favour themselves. I am not complaining, this is just the way it is, was and always will be. Enzo also had ultimate contempt for the ‘British Assemblers’ or ‘Garagistas’ as he put it, placing Ferrari and Renault as the true leaders of Grand Prix Racing.

    To this end Prisoner Monkey’s comments are completely accurate.

    Let us also remember, that Bernie ‘owns’ Formula 1 and has made it what it is today, love him or hate him. It would be extremely hard for a ‘breakaway’ series to compete with F1 and like PM, believe this is a typical piece of Ferrari posturing.

  32. Bored, bored BORED, of the politics in F1.

    B O R E D.

    These spoilt people are never gonna grow up. I cant wait for the racing to start. http://gt1world.com/ is my growing favourite.

    1. Just checked out the final race on that GT1world.com on your recommendation. It was pretty cool, but I really miss the finesse in those cars compared to F1. Also, there didn’t seem to be that much more overtaking.

      But, that San Luis circuit they were racing on has to be one of the most amazing ones I’ve ever seen. I think we could definitely do with another GP in South America.

      1. The overtaking varies per race, sometimes they’re crazy races, sometime more processional. But the TV is free and easy access, and there is much less political feel in there, it’s much more fair minded, and in the spirit of racing.

        But yeah, I agree, it’s not F1 :)

Comments are closed.