Situation Normal All F***ed Up

Well it didn't take long did it? Back in June during the British Grand Prix and at the height of the FOTA-FIA/FOM war, in order to appease fans, drivers and teams Bernie Ecclestone had stated a number of times that the British Grand Prix would remain and in fact could even remain at Silverstone.

But of course now that the teams have (stupidly) signed up with the FIA, Bernie is back to his worst. Obviously he doesn't give a shit about the best things in Formula 1. All he cares about is money for himself and those bastards, CVC.

Instead of trying to ensure the preservation of one of the oldest races on the calendar, he threatens the only venue that is currently equipped to hold the race. Bernie, I hope you die soon, you greedy old fart.

Givin Em What They Want

Just finished reading this great piece by Martin Brundle who recounts his experiences of the Silverstone circuit through the years. There's a great anecdote from Brundle about his first test of a Formula 1 car in a McLaren. Also present was Ayrton Senna and Stefan Bellof. Ayrton as ever in single minded pursuit of being the fastest ended up tanking the engine but still had the gall to ask Ron Dennis for a the lap time to which Dennis replied : "I find it very difficult to remember to press the stopwatch when I’m watching one of my cars blowing up." Absolutely priceless.

Like many over the weekend, Martin laments the departure of the British Grand Prix away from Silverstone. And like everyone else, he's right. As a driver's circuit, it ranks up there with the likes of Spa and Suzuka (although I still think Brands is better). I myself can vouch for this (not that it means much, mind) having driven the full Silverstone grand prix circuit on a cold winter's day in a borrowed BMW M3 (the original made-to-race Mk 1 mind you, not the pimp mobile you find today). To drive quickly, its fast and hard. Bridge its still absolutely scary, never mind what the commentators say. And there are lots of tricky bits like Becketts, Chapel and Abbey. Well, Abbey was tricky to me, I completely messed up my braking more than once through there! My favourite corners is still Copse. In the M3, you simply hurl it in and feel that car leaning hard underneath you. The Becketts complex would be great if I could have nailed the line through there. But it was extremely tricky to get it right through all those transitions. I just didn't know how and in the short time I had at the track day, I couldn't find it. Oh well, someday I shall return, hopefully to do it right.

After we had completed our runs we drove up to Becketts complex at the point where the track turns to form the National circuit. We watched the other cars go by and looked at lines before leaving. You have indeed a healthy respect for these grand prix drivers. Watching from trackside, the fastest supercar of the day seems like its moving at a snail's pace compared to how fast a grand prix car speeds around that complex. At that point, you are truly amazed at what those cars can do.

Watching the British Grand Prix over the weekend, absolutely everyone was raving about it. It was fabulous to see Mark Webber pulling no punches and taking a swipe at these new bore-a-dromes Bernie insists on putting the cars on. Heck, I even learned something new from the normally horrid Star Sports commentator, Steve Slater, who gave a history lesson on how some of the track's corners were named. Maggotts for instance after famer Maggots who gave his lands for the facility. Stowe Corner after the school. Abbey after a 13th Century monastery. Of course, Hangar is easy enough, named after the hangars used by the USAAF in World War 2.

The point is Silverstone reeks with history and heritage. The trophy presented to the winner of the grand prix goes back to the 1930s. One could say its hallowed ground almost. All this would count for bugger all if it wasn't such a great place to drive. But as a driving facility its absolutely fantastic. Alright, the race didn't produce the necessary overtaking but seriously, watch the cars carefully. Watch them go through Copse and see them lean hard. Its something you see much less of these days. The only other place you'll see it happen regularly being Spa. Watch carefully and you will see exactly what these cars were designed to do.

For years Bernie has had it in for Silverstone. You could say he's had it in for the British Grand Prix event itself. And that is complete bollocks. See the huge crowds that come by every single year come rain or shine.

I remember as a child, my dad taking me to the Malaysian Grand Prix (pre-Formula 1) at the old Shah Alam Batu Tiga circuit way back in the 1970s. I sat on a hill on the grass from morning till 6 in the evening under the baking sun with only a newspaper for cover. I didn't utter a word of complaint cause I was just enjoying watching the cars. And we went again year after year. My dad and I are die hard race fans and car enthusiasts. So what if there weren't covered stands or proper seats or any form of air conditioned luxuries? We still had a great day out and what was important was seeing the cars race.

And so in England where motorsports is ever present and prevalent I completely understand why the fans attend race day braving the traffic and the elements to watch the cars. They're die hard fans and nothing's ever going to change that. What does it matter that there are no towering grandstands and fancy pit complexes? Bernie can complain all he wants. He can raise excuse after excuse in order to rape as much money for himself and the CVC dogs by running races in the middle of the desert but there will never be that same passion and loyalty.

Up until the time when FOTA announced a breakaway championship, Bernie simply refused to get it. He refused to give these die-hard fans what they really want. As I mentioned, for years he's given all hell to Silverstone and even the idea of a British Grand Prix. But suddenly he realises he needs to give the fans what they want because you can bet FOTA would otherwise be doing the same. Suddenly Bernie is guaranteeing a British Grand Prix and in the (most likely) event that Donington doesn't deliver, it'll be run at Silverstone instead. Even if FOTA does nothing else, at the very least they have done this service for grand prix fans worldwide.

Hear Hear!!

I love it when the general press (as opposed to cowering racing journalists) hits hard, as did the UK Guardian in this article by Richard Williams today. Highlights:

"Those who watched the Turkish grand prix on television might be interested to learn that the people in charge of the transmission were instructed to focus their cameras tightly on the cars in order to disguise the paltry attendance.

Not everything can be obscured by green sheeting, cunning camera angles or Jenson Button's dazzling smile. Button's success ....is just about the only thing formula one has going for it during a year in which the corrosive effects of Mosley's political machinations and Ecclestone's insatiable greed have become fully apparent."

Brilliant opening salvo but there's more:

"By imposing a wholesale set of rule changes at the beginning of this season, rather than introducing alterations gradually, he made himself look like a reformer while actually forcing the teams to incur huge additional costs, not least through the addition of his vastly expensive and troublesome KERS system, already abandoned by most of the teams."

Where were articles like these years ago before the introduction of the rubbish KERS. Instead we even had some blogs and press supporting its entrance. But the article goes further and this part I like:

"So far only two teams – Williams and Force India – have switched to his camp, suffering expulsion from Fota as a result of choosing self-interest over the long-term health of the sport. The association's eight remaining members – Ferrari, Renault, BMW, Toyota, McLaren-Mercedes, Brawn, Red Bull and Toro Rosso – might very well take the view that grand prix racing can exist perfectly well without one team that won its last championship in 1997 and another that shows little sign of doing anything other than making up the numbers."

Finally someone else says these things I've been trying to get across!

"Whatever Mosley may say, his objective appears not to be making formula one cheaper, greener or more competitive. It is to retain control of the sport first by dividing and ruling the existing competitors and second by threatening the introduction of a bunch of new teams whose loyalty to him and to Ecclestone has been bought by the rewriting of technical regulations and by the promise of financial assistance."

The article concludes:

"How much better the world would seem if formula one returned to Silverstone next year and Mosley and Ecclestone did not."

Amen to that Mr Richard Williams!

And so to the wannabe racing team boss Vijay Mallya. Why don't you quit being a wannabe and take your billions elsewhere instead being a nuisance in grand prix racing? Giving it to help the hardcore poor in your country who live on the streets eating scraps off garbage would probably be more beneficial to yourself and your nation in the long run.