**** American Grand Prix ***** (contains spoilers)
Discussion
JonRB said:
Thanks for posting. Lots of things to speculate about there.The most notable is the dissension in the command: MacKenzie and Ecclestone disagreeing it would seem. Is it possible that the reason Ecclestone said he was in error was because of a phone call? This might also explain the inconsistency of Ecclestone's pronouncements at Austin: three cars from each team and then, no it is a bad idea.
The idea of boycotting the last race is a cracker. This is the country that, for whatever reason, managed to get extra points awarded. Perhaps whatever the pressure they exerted for that to fall into their laps might also mean they can put pressure on CVC.
Wolff seems to have a positive view, directly contrary to Horner. However, what the big teams might be afraid of is that if they started making concessions then it would cost them more, They might feel that the extra funding should come from CVC's coffers and not theirs.
On top of that, the knives appear to be, if not out, then at least sharpened. The 'Ecclestone's once iron grip on the sport' - yesterday's man they seem to be suggesting.
The main problem for CVC is the drop in global audience figures. That needs addressing and a more competitive grid, with lots of cars on it, is one way of negating the risk of falling income.
MacKenzie said he would act 'regardless of Ecclestone's position'. Now that's new.
Derek Smith said:
MacKenzie said he would act 'regardless of Ecclestone's position'. Now that's new.
Yes, I found that particularly telling. Everything Bernie has done up to now in 'selling' his various interests in F1 have never left him with less power. This is the first time I can recall anyone suggesting that Bernie is beholden to anyone or could be overruled.Intriguing.
The Surveyor said:
The pass Lewis made was sufficiently early in the race for Nico to at least have a go at Lewis and put some pressure on him, to adjust his tyre strategy or aero balance like Lewis did. I'd agree if Hamilton had passed at the end of the race, but this wasn't even half-distance. I'm struggling to believe Nico didn't have a strategy to counter an overtake by Lewis if he had any real desire to beat him!
Nico wasn't comfortable with the handling of his car.Nico is inferior racer to Lewis and then you have to take into account of post-Belgium rules of engagement; perhaps confidence lacking when racing Lewis; or simply Nico didn't expect the overtake as he came from quite a way back and the speed differential increased further from a couple of car lengths away.
I'd take it all with a pinch of salt. Rumours from EJ written up by Benson or one of his subordinates.
Lopez said he hadn't heard anything about boycotts and would be racing when asked on Saturday. Now he was at the centre of it ? another paper said that a boycott was only avoided by 90 minutes.
Clearly talks have taken place (Kaltenborn & Mallya were in Bernie's office a few times over the weekend) but I think an awful lot of this is hype and the media getting far too carried away.
Lopez said he hadn't heard anything about boycotts and would be racing when asked on Saturday. Now he was at the centre of it ? another paper said that a boycott was only avoided by 90 minutes.
Clearly talks have taken place (Kaltenborn & Mallya were in Bernie's office a few times over the weekend) but I think an awful lot of this is hype and the media getting far too carried away.
Crafty_ said:
I'd take it all with a pinch of salt. Rumours from EJ written up by Benson or one of his subordinates.
Lopez said he hadn't heard anything about boycotts and would be racing when asked on Saturday. Now he was at the centre of it ? another paper said that a boycott was only avoided by 90 minutes.
Clearly talks have taken place (Kaltenborn & Mallya were in Bernie's office a few times over the weekend) but I think an awful lot of this is hype and the media getting far too carried away.
Something went on though. Lopez said he hadn't heard anything about boycotts and would be racing when asked on Saturday. Now he was at the centre of it ? another paper said that a boycott was only avoided by 90 minutes.
Clearly talks have taken place (Kaltenborn & Mallya were in Bernie's office a few times over the weekend) but I think an awful lot of this is hype and the media getting far too carried away.
What we will get in the next few days is a press release to say that everything in the garden is lovely and the team principles all went uot for a meal afterwards with Marussia picking up the tab as they had money to spare. But then again we might not.
I agree that what is released to the press is spin. However there seems to have been a meeting with the lesser teams pre Austin and they talked tactics. They have pleased before, now, one assumes, there were threats.
What might be going on is something else entirely: all the teams forming up against CVC for more money? An unofficial FOTA, more like a meeting of those with similar concerns? What is evident is that the teams are trying to sake the tree.
Ferrari have been mute, but then they have a lot to be mute about. They take the lion's share and will want to keep it but they have new management, one that might well be concerned that the 6 car grid of 2005 might become the norm.
I feel certain that the teams are concerned about the way F1 is being run. Falling viewing figures, races in locations they sell little to, teams falling away, rising costs, and more and more and more. They don't even know who or what will replace Ecclestone.
F1 is in a parlous state as the attraction is ephemeral. It is the most watched motor sport because it is the top one. It is the top one because it is the most watched. Put a dozen cars on the grid and it will all fall apart.
The circuit owners are concerned as well, although that's been kept quiet. Silverstone lost £1m in hosting the GP. Other venues are equally stretched. Most cannot afford to accede to the demands of Ecclestone. Something, or someone, has got to give. I know whom I think is in the firing line.
On top of that we have one of the German manufacturers suggesting they are coming into the sport. They have been promised something. They must have been as they have the whip hand.
Yes I know Ecclestone, or 'Bernie', has got this all planned and everything is falling exactly according to his demands. If so then he's in a worse condition than he looks because his great plan must be to bring the sport to its knees.
We have had a very exciting season. It's been a cracker. Yet the business model is failing.
Fernley was talking to the press in order to create bad reports. And he succeeded.
Derek Smith said:
Something went on though.
What we will get in the next few days is a press release to say that everything in the garden is lovely and the team principles all went uot for a meal afterwards with Marussia picking up the tab as they had money to spare. But then again we might not.
What we'll get is no real news, but some of the media continually re-hashing tittle tattle.What we will get in the next few days is a press release to say that everything in the garden is lovely and the team principles all went uot for a meal afterwards with Marussia picking up the tab as they had money to spare. But then again we might not.
Derek Smith said:
What might be going on is something else entirely: all the teams forming up against CVC for more money? An unofficial FOTA, more like a meeting of those with similar concerns? What is evident is that the teams are trying to sake the tree.
Teams always want more money, but if they want that they should have negotiated last year when they re-signed the Concorde Agreement. I think everyone has accepted that its not the amount of money, but the unbalanced sharing of it. Bernie has said FOM will put a bit more money in the pot if the big teams reduce their take a little. Its a fair compromise.
Derek Smith said:
Ferrari have been mute, but then they have a lot to be mute about. They take the lion's share and will want to keep it but they have new management, one that might well be concerned that the 6 car grid of 2005 might become the norm.
They haven't been mute, Mattiacci has been quite clear about what he thinks.http://www.crash.net/f1/news/210510/1/kaltenborn-c...
Derek Smith said:
I feel certain that the teams are concerned about the way F1 is being run. Falling viewing figures, races in locations they sell little to, teams falling away, rising costs, and more and more and more. They don't even know who or what will replace Ecclestone.
The circuit owners are concerned as well, although that's been kept quiet. Silverstone lost £1m in hosting the GP. Other venues are equally stretched. Most cannot afford to accede to the demands of Ecclestone. Something, or someone, has got to give. I know whom I think is in the firing line.
On top of that we have one of the German manufacturers suggesting they are coming into the sport. They have been promised something. They must have been as they have the whip hand.
Yes I know Ecclestone, or 'Bernie', has got this all planned and everything is falling exactly according to his demands. If so then he's in a worse condition than he looks because his great plan must be to bring the sport to its knees.
I know you and others would love to see nothing more than Bernie thrown out of the sport. Then what? are CVC going to turn in to lovely fluffy bunnies and give everyone lots of money ?The circuit owners are concerned as well, although that's been kept quiet. Silverstone lost £1m in hosting the GP. Other venues are equally stretched. Most cannot afford to accede to the demands of Ecclestone. Something, or someone, has got to give. I know whom I think is in the firing line.
On top of that we have one of the German manufacturers suggesting they are coming into the sport. They have been promised something. They must have been as they have the whip hand.
Yes I know Ecclestone, or 'Bernie', has got this all planned and everything is falling exactly according to his demands. If so then he's in a worse condition than he looks because his great plan must be to bring the sport to its knees.
Are they hell. He might just be the best person to have there right now. He has made mistakes, and so has everyone else but he's readily accepting that they need to fix the problem and is looking for help. Remove him and get some investor guy who doesn't know the teams, doesn't know the track owners and ultimately will push for every penny he can get and things are just going to get worse.
I honestly think that Bernie's adeptness at negotiation and his relationships with everyone will be needed.
Bernie has issued his "mea culpa" but the elephant in the room is that everyone needs to play ball. The media need to clean up their act, big teams have to accept that they can't always get what they want on the money side, they need to give the little guys a chance. The small teams need to stop this "everyones out to destroy us" mentality. FOM need to open up new revenue streams and do more promotion - they can learn a lot from NASCAR here. People in that world are bemoaning a downturn but the industry (pretty much based in one country) is huge. One caveat though, NO chase!
For what its worth I don't think this is anywhere near "Bernie's plan" as you put it. In Bernie's little world you don't sign anything you can't do, the teams signed last year so they can do it, right ?
Well, umm, not really as it turns out. So Bernie is being completely honest "oh f
k, okay. We need to sort this out then". The "I'd rip it all up and start again if I could" is his opening gambit. He probably can't just do what he likes, at the end of the day CVC do have expectations.For once I think we actually saw Bernie being honest.
Edited by Crafty_ on Monday 3rd November 22:13
I'm not sure what you did to the formatting but I'll try and reply.
You put a link on to Ferrari not saying anything about Ecclestone.
You mention that some people want Ecclestone out and then suggest that he is doing a good job.
But he's not, is he. He is losing teams. He's lost two between two races. The business model is failing.
The sport has gone through dangerous periods before and come through it but the reason is normally money. The current financial situation is what is hurting the sport's income but what has happened is that the organisers have increased costs.
You seem to suggest that it's all the teams' fault for signing stuff, yet they were told one thing about costs and it was false. They had planned their budget with the promise in mind.
It is not up to the media to change. Why should it? They do what their readers want. It is up to the sport to to cope with the situation as it stands. Perhaps they should be more open, stop being ambiguous, give out some information? But that's not going to happen.
Ecclestone being honest? Yeah, right.
You put a link on to Ferrari not saying anything about Ecclestone.
You mention that some people want Ecclestone out and then suggest that he is doing a good job.
But he's not, is he. He is losing teams. He's lost two between two races. The business model is failing.
The sport has gone through dangerous periods before and come through it but the reason is normally money. The current financial situation is what is hurting the sport's income but what has happened is that the organisers have increased costs.
You seem to suggest that it's all the teams' fault for signing stuff, yet they were told one thing about costs and it was false. They had planned their budget with the promise in mind.
It is not up to the media to change. Why should it? They do what their readers want. It is up to the sport to to cope with the situation as it stands. Perhaps they should be more open, stop being ambiguous, give out some information? But that's not going to happen.
Ecclestone being honest? Yeah, right.
Ferrari haven't been mute about money, as you suggest they want to keep all their extra payouts and Mattiacci's comments in the link I provided reflect that.
Where did I say Bernie is doing a good job ? If you read what I wrote I said "He's made mistakes". I also suggested FOM need to do more on the promotion side. Or do you only read the bits you want to hear?
And people DO want him out - you for starters.
You make it sound like Bernie got those teams in to F1 - they were Moseley's legacy.
Ultimately teams are at (partly) at fault, they have signed up to something that provides their main income, yet doesn't give them enough to survive. If Bernie did wrong by skewing the payments too much to the big teams then the small teams made a mistake by signing the same document. It takes two to tango. (Alternatively they pushed hard for everything they could get with no regard for the little guys that they knew would suffer).
Don't give it the "those teams were promised a budget cap" crap. Every man and his dog knew it wasn't going to happen for the simple reason that the big teams didn't want one. Besides, as many have pointed out its almost impossible to police, just like the RRA which was abused. By the time the teams were in talks to enter F1 FOTA had formed and were fighting hard against a cap. You only had to read the news reports at the time to realise it wasn't going to happen.
So the fans want to hear about a boycott that was never going to take place ? They want to see their sport splashed across mainstream media in such a way that it damages everyone involved ? Really ? I don't think so. Brundle was pretty livid Sunday morning - as he said this sort of thing should be sorted out with a bit of decency and decorum.
I know your response to that will be "oh but they had to so that Bernie would listen blah blah blah".
bks. Last year Merc were having serious problems seeing eye to eye with Bernie over the Concorde Agreement. Did they run to the press crying "wwwaaahh Bernie wants X and we need Y or we'll leave wwaaahhh". No, they looked around and realised they needed a common ally and hired Lauda to quietly, effectively sort out the situation, which he did.
Some of the media jumped straight in on this boycott thing and couldn't wait to a make a big deal of it. Those with a bit of decorum stood back and just waited a while before reporting.
You really need to get over your hatred for Bernie. It will fix precisely nothing if he goes and potentially could make things worse. Unless you have a good insight that suggests otherwise ?
Where did I say Bernie is doing a good job ? If you read what I wrote I said "He's made mistakes". I also suggested FOM need to do more on the promotion side. Or do you only read the bits you want to hear?
And people DO want him out - you for starters.
You make it sound like Bernie got those teams in to F1 - they were Moseley's legacy.
Ultimately teams are at (partly) at fault, they have signed up to something that provides their main income, yet doesn't give them enough to survive. If Bernie did wrong by skewing the payments too much to the big teams then the small teams made a mistake by signing the same document. It takes two to tango. (Alternatively they pushed hard for everything they could get with no regard for the little guys that they knew would suffer).
Don't give it the "those teams were promised a budget cap" crap. Every man and his dog knew it wasn't going to happen for the simple reason that the big teams didn't want one. Besides, as many have pointed out its almost impossible to police, just like the RRA which was abused. By the time the teams were in talks to enter F1 FOTA had formed and were fighting hard against a cap. You only had to read the news reports at the time to realise it wasn't going to happen.
So the fans want to hear about a boycott that was never going to take place ? They want to see their sport splashed across mainstream media in such a way that it damages everyone involved ? Really ? I don't think so. Brundle was pretty livid Sunday morning - as he said this sort of thing should be sorted out with a bit of decency and decorum.
I know your response to that will be "oh but they had to so that Bernie would listen blah blah blah".
b
ks. Last year Merc were having serious problems seeing eye to eye with Bernie over the Concorde Agreement. Did they run to the press crying "wwwaaahh Bernie wants X and we need Y or we'll leave wwaaahhh". No, they looked around and realised they needed a common ally and hired Lauda to quietly, effectively sort out the situation, which he did.Some of the media jumped straight in on this boycott thing and couldn't wait to a make a big deal of it. Those with a bit of decorum stood back and just waited a while before reporting.
You really need to get over your hatred for Bernie. It will fix precisely nothing if he goes and potentially could make things worse. Unless you have a good insight that suggests otherwise ?
Edited by Crafty_ on Monday 3rd November 22:50
Hamilton did a good job. Had the pace but also seemed to have his head in the right place from the start. A pretty mature drive methinks.
Ricciardo was a class act again. He seems to have fine pace and also 'Webber esque' grit on the track. I don't want to give Vettel a hard time but young Daniel seems to be showing him the way home this season.
Ricciardo was a class act again. He seems to have fine pace and also 'Webber esque' grit on the track. I don't want to give Vettel a hard time but young Daniel seems to be showing him the way home this season.
Crafty_ said:
And people DO want him out - you for starters.
I'd love to see the back of Bernie. He did a fantastic job back in the day, in the past few years though he's made some poor decisions, and he doesn't 'get' the way that media is headed. TV is dying. Audience figures are falling because TV is dying, though moving half the coverage away from FTA stations hasn't helped. Social media and internet streaming, and lack of good F1 online coverage is why audience figures are falling. Rather than embracing change and getting F1 on youTube, or some other video streaming service Bernie keeps playing whack a mole and getting any unauthorised videos removed. Having an F1 app that is crippleware unless you pay a lot for it is a 90's solution to DRM.
I think F1 needs new blood at the top and that Ecclestones best days are gone.
Having said all that I do think that his recent comments "It's my fault" etc are about as close to him being honest as we'll ever likely see and that right now booting him out would make things worse. He's the only person that knows the ins and outs of all the deals, probably by design.
in other news I enjoyed the USGP. It's a great track and long may we continue to race there. The sooner we can get back to the media reporting on racing and not <insert political scandal du jour here> the better.
Falling audiences.
F1 has been dependent on sponsorship for decades (even before 1968 there was substantial sponsorship money in the sport). Having a business model that RESTRICTS sponsors' exposure is a one way ticket to the end.
Every time F1 has adopted a pay to view format, the pay to view format fails. I see no reason to see why this will change.
F1 has been dependent on sponsorship for decades (even before 1968 there was substantial sponsorship money in the sport). Having a business model that RESTRICTS sponsors' exposure is a one way ticket to the end.
Every time F1 has adopted a pay to view format, the pay to view format fails. I see no reason to see why this will change.
Having said that, I have found the Sky F1 channel has been absolutely brilliant and consider it the best coverage we have ever had - even better than the BBC at their very pinacle (which was the year before the Sky coverage started). The fact that the cream of the BBC team were lured to Sky is undoubtedly contributory.
Eric Mc said:
The problem is that pay to view has worked quite well for football (soccer) in the UK and that has deluded many sports into thinking that if it works for the Premier League that it can work for any sport. I think that is pretty obviously not the case.
well, yes and no, there are quite a few Premier clubs in significant financial strifeJonRB said:
Having said that, I have found the Sky F1 channel has been absolutely brilliant and consider it the best coverage we have ever had - even better than the BBC at their very pinacle (which was the year before the Sky coverage started). The fact that the cream of the BBC team were lured to Sky is undoubtedly contributory.
no argument, but that's somewhat a separate issue/question.the total UK viewing audience (and thus what you can sell to sponsors) has decreased hugely.
replicate this world-wide and your going to have issues, even Mclaren have struggled with finding sponsors this year.
Any strategy that drives viewers away is bound to end in tears. Unfortunately, the "money up front" obtained in the TV bidding wars that sometimes ensues gives the impression of increased income. But it is short term and the long term is that the sport is run dry of income as the viewers stay away.
F1 is a total money pit as we all know and unless a guaranteed supply of ongoing cash is fed in from the sponsors (who are attracted by the TV audiences), the cash will be insufficient to keep the circus running.
I think we are seeing this actually happening before our eyes.
F1 is a total money pit as we all know and unless a guaranteed supply of ongoing cash is fed in from the sponsors (who are attracted by the TV audiences), the cash will be insufficient to keep the circus running.
I think we are seeing this actually happening before our eyes.
JonRB said:
hornetrider said:
At the first round of pitstops Lewis wound on some front wing, and after this he was able to close and pass Nico and build a small lead of 3-4s. After the second round of pitstops the gap from Lewis to Nico gradually came down from around 4s to under 2s at one point - did Nico copy Lewis and add some front wing in the second stop possibly in order to improve performance? Or perhaps he took a bit too much out of the tyres in trying to catch up, but ultimately didn't have the pace/tyres left to pass. Either way the gap then drifted out to ~2.5s and stayed there til the chequered flag.
Under the old pit radio rules, Nico would have been told exactly what settings Lewis was running and where he was making up the time, and Nico would have literally been coached over the radio as to how to copy Lewis and remove Lewis' advantage. He'd have also been told that Lewis had adjusted his wing settings and asked if he would like the same applied on his next pit stop. Thank goodness all that is now banned and Nico can no longer crib Lewis' homework.
I'm expecting Nico to come back strong in Brazil though, he's clearly a tough cookie and desperately wants to win a WDC.
Crafty_ said:
Ferrari haven't been mute about money, as you suggest they want to keep all their extra payouts and Mattiacci's comments in the link I provided reflect that.
Where did I say Bernie is doing a good job ? If you read what I wrote I said "He's made mistakes". I also suggested FOM need to do more on the promotion side. Or do you only read the bits you want to hear?
And people DO want him out - you for starters.
You make it sound like Bernie got those teams in to F1 - they were Moseley's legacy.
Ultimately teams are at (partly) at fault, they have signed up to something that provides their main income, yet doesn't give them enough to survive. If Bernie did wrong by skewing the payments too much to the big teams then the small teams made a mistake by signing the same document. It takes two to tango. (Alternatively they pushed hard for everything they could get with no regard for the little guys that they knew would suffer).
Don't give it the "those teams were promised a budget cap" crap. Every man and his dog knew it wasn't going to happen for the simple reason that the big teams didn't want one. Besides, as many have pointed out its almost impossible to police, just like the RRA which was abused. By the time the teams were in talks to enter F1 FOTA had formed and were fighting hard against a cap. You only had to read the news reports at the time to realise it wasn't going to happen.
So the fans want to hear about a boycott that was never going to take place ? They want to see their sport splashed across mainstream media in such a way that it damages everyone involved ? Really ? I don't think so. Brundle was pretty livid Sunday morning - as he said this sort of thing should be sorted out with a bit of decency and decorum.
I know your response to that will be "oh but they had to so that Bernie would listen blah blah blah".
bks. Last year Merc were having serious problems seeing eye to eye with Bernie over the Concorde Agreement. Did they run to the press crying "wwwaaahh Bernie wants X and we need Y or we'll leave wwaaahhh". No, they looked around and realised they needed a common ally and hired Lauda to quietly, effectively sort out the situation, which he did.
Some of the media jumped straight in on this boycott thing and couldn't wait to a make a big deal of it. Those with a bit of decorum stood back and just waited a while before reporting.
You really need to get over your hatred for Bernie. It will fix precisely nothing if he goes and potentially could make things worse. Unless you have a good insight that suggests otherwise ?
This is Ecclestone's 'plan'. He follows the money. The current situation is his creation. He used Mosley as the acceptable face of his carpetbagging. As soon as Mosley started to have ideas of his own, he was out. The cause of the current situation is that all support was directed at F1 because that was where the money was, at least short term.Where did I say Bernie is doing a good job ? If you read what I wrote I said "He's made mistakes". I also suggested FOM need to do more on the promotion side. Or do you only read the bits you want to hear?
And people DO want him out - you for starters.
You make it sound like Bernie got those teams in to F1 - they were Moseley's legacy.
Ultimately teams are at (partly) at fault, they have signed up to something that provides their main income, yet doesn't give them enough to survive. If Bernie did wrong by skewing the payments too much to the big teams then the small teams made a mistake by signing the same document. It takes two to tango. (Alternatively they pushed hard for everything they could get with no regard for the little guys that they knew would suffer).
Don't give it the "those teams were promised a budget cap" crap. Every man and his dog knew it wasn't going to happen for the simple reason that the big teams didn't want one. Besides, as many have pointed out its almost impossible to police, just like the RRA which was abused. By the time the teams were in talks to enter F1 FOTA had formed and were fighting hard against a cap. You only had to read the news reports at the time to realise it wasn't going to happen.
So the fans want to hear about a boycott that was never going to take place ? They want to see their sport splashed across mainstream media in such a way that it damages everyone involved ? Really ? I don't think so. Brundle was pretty livid Sunday morning - as he said this sort of thing should be sorted out with a bit of decency and decorum.
I know your response to that will be "oh but they had to so that Bernie would listen blah blah blah".
b
ks. Last year Merc were having serious problems seeing eye to eye with Bernie over the Concorde Agreement. Did they run to the press crying "wwwaaahh Bernie wants X and we need Y or we'll leave wwaaahhh". No, they looked around and realised they needed a common ally and hired Lauda to quietly, effectively sort out the situation, which he did.Some of the media jumped straight in on this boycott thing and couldn't wait to a make a big deal of it. Those with a bit of decorum stood back and just waited a while before reporting.
You really need to get over your hatred for Bernie. It will fix precisely nothing if he goes and potentially could make things worse. Unless you have a good insight that suggests otherwise ?
Edited by Crafty_ on Monday 3rd November 22:50
If you think that the threat from the lower teams is just press hype, then OK. Others might consider it to be a symptom of the failure of the business model. I doubt there will be a boycott but the threat alone might well make those with the ability to resolve their financial problems and keep the sport going.
I have no 'hatred for Bernie', I just want him to go. If he used his undoubted abilities to sort the current fiasco then I'd be happy, and happy to let him stay, but he has been its architect. He is not only short but short-term.
When he goes it is probable that the sport will suffer, but that will be of what Ecclestone did when he was in position. It would be his fault.
There's every chance that those who have invested in F1 might well come up with a plan that will take them through to continued success. But I doubt it. They have been divided, rather cleverly, by Ecclestone.
Just to clarify about the voluble Ferrari response, what did they say about the problems of the lower teams and the solution?
Here we have a team which, seen as the main draw in the sport, has been given advantages (and still can't compete) and wants to keep it.
Wolff is the only one who is talking sense, but then he's after a return on Merc's investment and needs a successful F1 series to do so.
When Ecclestone goes there is a chance that we might lose the venues where there is little point for the sponsors. China is an exception of course, Merc just establishing a massive R&D base there, so they'll want to stay there, but not the sandy places.
We might even, whisper it, a French GP.
Someone mentioned the massive F1 industry in this country, it depending on the sport being successful. We need someone in charge who sees the sport as a business and not a sources of income.
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