Formula Women... A great thing!!
Discussion
I've been hearing a little bit about this Formula women thing and I think it's a great idea. There seems to be some people that don't think so but I think that anything that promotes motor sport and especially women's motor sport can only be a good thing.
I believe that the standard is really good and the most people like myself are looking forward to seeing how the RX-8 handles on the track.
I look forward to watching the first race!
I believe that the standard is really good and the most people like myself are looking forward to seeing how the RX-8 handles on the track.
I look forward to watching the first race!
if you have read all the previous threads relating to Formula Woman you can at least begin to understand why it has come under attack. I don't have much of an opinion on it to be honest, I'll see how the first races go but I doubt it will be around in three years time and from a personal point of view, with so many championships fighting for space on race meeting schedules, the last thing british motorsport needs is short term championships with major backing starting in a blaze of glory then fizziling out within a year or two. The Focus Cup is an example, as is Formula Zip. I can however, see a relatively good future for the Mr2 championships and the MAX-5 racing championships. the public might not want to see modified road production cars racing but they are cheaper and available to a far greater proportion of wopuld-be racing dirvers in comparison to the Focus Cup or indeed Formula Woman. See told you I didnt have much of an opinion on it!...
Yeah I take your point. From a sponsors point of view you don't want to put lots of money into something only for it not to be around in a few years time.
I don't think that the ferrari/schumacher dominance has helped the sport TBH.
My hope for the formula women side of things is that because of the way the girls have been picked it might encourage people to take an interest in the sport as it's a bit different.
I don't think that the ferrari/schumacher dominance has helped the sport TBH.
My hope for the formula women side of things is that because of the way the girls have been picked it might encourage people to take an interest in the sport as it's a bit different.
this whole issue would not be a problem if the UK had more grassroots motorsport on TV...
it's unlikley we'd ever see something like the mr2 challenge on tv for example... so the only way it seems you can do something like this is down the whole media blitz/marketing/sponsorship route.
i am a supporter of formula woman... if this is the only way it can be done then so be it, something is better than nothing!
it's unlikley we'd ever see something like the mr2 challenge on tv for example... so the only way it seems you can do something like this is down the whole media blitz/marketing/sponsorship route.
i am a supporter of formula woman... if this is the only way it can be done then so be it, something is better than nothing!
pablo said:
if you have read all the previous threads relating to Formula Woman you can at least begin to understand why it has come under attack. I don't have much of an opinion on it to be honest, I'll see how the first races go but I doubt it will be around in three years time and from a personal point of view, with so many championships fighting for space on race meeting schedules, the last thing british motorsport needs is short term championships with major backing starting in a blaze of glory then fizziling out within a year or two. The Focus Cup is an example, as is Formula Zip. I can however, see a relatively good future for the Mr2 championships and the MAX-5 racing championships. the public might not want to see modified road production cars racing but they are cheaper and available to a far greater proportion of wopuld-be racing dirvers in comparison to the Focus Cup or indeed Formula Woman. See told you I didnt have much of an opinion on it!...
press release said:
Formula Woman, the unique new motor racing series for female drivers, announces today a new title sponsor for the championship. The championship, now known as Mates Formula Woman, brings pioneering UK condom brand Mates into this new venture, with all publicity materials and merchandise ranges associated with the ground-breaking race series featuring the Mates brand identity.
Formula Woman is Britain’s first ever all-women motor racing series, with the grid of drivers selected through a nationwide search for talented, non-professional racers. The ten round championship will be broadcast by ITV1 this summer in a series of programmes that mix exciting race coverage with fly-on-the-wall reality TV. The programmes will show the gruelling tests employed to whittle the 10,000 hopeful applicants to the 16 ladies who’ll get to race. The chosen ones will drive specially prepared, identical Mazda RX-8’s at some of the UK’s best known race circuits.
Mates will use Formula Woman to promote its soon-to-be-launched Pleasure Range aimed at women aged between 25 and 35. It is the unconventional, seductive new line for women who want to share the excitement of their relationships as much as their partners. The brand is an ideal complement for Formula Woman, in which girls experience a slice of the action for themselves, proving in the process that they can have as much fun as men. Both provide a sassy alternative stance to tradition and established practice.
Mates Formula Woman creator Graeme Glew commented:
“We are delighted that Mates has agreed to partner with Formula Woman in our first year and we look forward to the debut of Mates Formula Woman next month.
The two brands fit well; motor racing has traditionally been a male preserve and this new venture challenges the current norm, while Mates is targeting women in a market which usually targets males. The girls taking part are all attracted by the excitement and thrill of a daring environment, indulging in a passion for passion’s sake.”
The inaugural Formula Woman championship will be visiting leading British circuits. Edited highlights of the events will be shown on ITV 1’s Speed Sunday, beginning with a series exploring the highs and lows of the elimination process.
Log on to www.formulawoman.com for all the details.
What a cheesey piece of sponsorship
If you want grass roots stuff on tv then Motors tv show the entire BTCC program live including all the support races...
Formula Woman ...... hmmmm..... saw the launch at Autosport show and noticed that it was only the "photogenic ladies" who were involved, the other women didn't get a look-in.
I expect we will see a very aesthetically pleasing selection who make the final 16 rather than the best 16 drivers. Remember this is a TV show not a racing series (whatever they may say)
Formula Woman ...... hmmmm..... saw the launch at Autosport show and noticed that it was only the "photogenic ladies" who were involved, the other women didn't get a look-in.
I expect we will see a very aesthetically pleasing selection who make the final 16 rather than the best 16 drivers. Remember this is a TV show not a racing series (whatever they may say)
Sex discrimination Due to the subject matter, i presumed that Fred Jones was a pseudonym and the real poster of the message has some connection with the series but I thought I would finally put some comments to paper about it. There is far too much conspiracy surrounding this series for it to be taken with much credability.
Ferrari and Schumacher are light years away from Formula Woman, they are only associated by the fact that they are cars with numbers on the side. To say that the dominance affects club motorsport is like saying that no one will watch third division football matches if Arsenal win everything!
If even a quarter of the competitors in Formula Woman have any sort of racing future when the Mazda cash dries up I will be very surprised.
Ferrari and Schumacher are light years away from Formula Woman, they are only associated by the fact that they are cars with numbers on the side. To say that the dominance affects club motorsport is like saying that no one will watch third division football matches if Arsenal win everything!
If even a quarter of the competitors in Formula Woman have any sort of racing future when the Mazda cash dries up I will be very surprised.
exint2 said:
If you want grass roots stuff on tv then Motors tv show the entire BTCC program live including all the support races...
Formula Woman ...... hmmmm..... saw the launch at Autosport show and noticed that it was only the "photogenic ladies" who were involved, the other women didn't get a look-in.
I expect we will see a very aesthetically pleasing selection who make the final 16 rather than the best 16 drivers. Remember this is a TV show not a racing series (whatever they may say)
I think you have mistaken my comments. I mean to say that grass roots motorsport suffers due to the cash that Mazda throw at this series to promote the RX8. Its nota bout promoting female mortorposrt competitors. Mazda wont be paying for them to drive in other cars once the formula woman thing is over. I have no interest in watching the BTCC, its not grassroots, its big budgets! the support races are enjoyable but BTCC has done nothing to rectify the stock car comaprisons it earnt in the mid nineties as far as i am concerned. wasnt it only as year or two ago that the championship was decided by two guys taking each other out of the race?
Models were used at the launch of Formula Woman at the Autosport show. to be fair to the organisers, this was only to be expected as the drivers hadant been selected. what better way to get coverage than putting loads of attractive women in tight clothing and draping them over the car!
I dont think the organisers will pick the best looking drivers as this would be too obvious and leave them open for a lot of criticism. What will be interesting to see is the difference in lap times between the first and the last drivers on the opening day. I would have thought that the 16 best drivers in the whole competition, in idenitical cars, should be within four seconds of each other....
edited to add, if people are so interested in grass roots motorsport, why dont more people actually go to the race circuits rather than complain that its not televised? I would imagine most people live within an hour or so of a race circuit in this Country and its not like its expensive.
>> Edited by anonymous-user on Monday 26th April 15:43
it's ridiculous saying only the "aesthetically pleasing" will be in the top 16. Funny as it sounds but watching 16 'blonde bimbos' pootle around a track like they are trying to find a tesco's parking spot just wont make good tv... we'd be bored to tears after we stopped laughing!
i'm hopeful this will make some good racing, there's no reason why it wont.
i'm hopeful this will make some good racing, there's no reason why it wont.
exint2 said:
If you want grass roots stuff on tv then Motors tv show the entire BTCC program live including all the support races...
Formula Woman ...... hmmmm..... saw the launch at Autosport show and noticed that it was only the "photogenic ladies" who were involved, the other women didn't get a look-in.
I expect we will see a very aesthetically pleasing selection who make the final 16 rather than the best 16 drivers. Remember this is a TV show not a racing series (whatever they may say)
dexter said:
it's ridiculous saying only the "aesthetically pleasing" will be in the top 16.
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Please re-read my post I did not say that only the aesthetically pleasing would be chosen, just that there would be a higher number of more attractive competitiors.
Look at it logically if you are trying to sell a series on TV and you have 2 reletively equally talented drivers who are at different ends of the "TV attractiveness level" who would you choose.
I am quite sure that the top 5-10 will be the best drivers, but the rest will be those easiest to sell be it for thier looks, an intresting story (they are related to so- and- so or they used to do something interesting or they have overcome some disadvantage).
You have to understand that this is a made for TV championship, where the competitors are selected. normal rules do not apply!
TBH the email address I am using is my junk email address. Given the amount of spam that's out there I don't want it on my normal email address.
Why is there a big thing about revealing your name and stuff anyway.
My real name isn't Fred Jones but then is your real name Pablo, Petrol Ted, Exint2 etc.
It seems that my first post has been viewed in a sceptical manner... I take it there have been some trolls about!!
Why is there a big thing about revealing your name and stuff anyway.
My real name isn't Fred Jones but then is your real name Pablo, Petrol Ted, Exint2 etc.
It seems that my first post has been viewed in a sceptical manner... I take it there have been some trolls about!!
I was one of the 50 finalists in Formula Woman and I can categorically state that not all of the girls chosen are there because of driving talent. *SOME* of them are, but others are there because of pure TV reasons. They are definitely not all the cream of novice female driving talent in the UK though.
I went into FW truly believing that they *had* to choose the best drivers, and I came away from it very disillusioned and pissed off at myself for being so gullible. So did several of the other eliminees.
The crap that went on during the eliminations week was unreal, however a confidentiality agreement prevents me from talking about it. I live for the day when that agreement runs out.
And it's not sour grapes either...I know I'm good on a track, I just didn't have anything that the TV people wanted.
The search for "female singing stars" by Mike Stock to release a "Formula Woman album" to tie in with this championship just makes me feel more and more that this is just a moneyspinner for the organisers.
Not all of the girls are photogenic either so it's not just a fashion parade. Anyhow, we will see what the driving and laptimes are like on each race, and judge from that. Maybe we will be surprised!
I do believe that FW won't be around next year, they would have to find another manufacturere with a car to flog? I can't see Mazda wanting to be involved for a second year running, and depending on how this first Championship is judged by the motorsport press and the public, will another manufacturer want to put its name to it?
>> Edited by Mrs Button on Monday 26th April 19:35
I went into FW truly believing that they *had* to choose the best drivers, and I came away from it very disillusioned and pissed off at myself for being so gullible. So did several of the other eliminees.
The crap that went on during the eliminations week was unreal, however a confidentiality agreement prevents me from talking about it. I live for the day when that agreement runs out.
And it's not sour grapes either...I know I'm good on a track, I just didn't have anything that the TV people wanted.
The search for "female singing stars" by Mike Stock to release a "Formula Woman album" to tie in with this championship just makes me feel more and more that this is just a moneyspinner for the organisers.
Not all of the girls are photogenic either so it's not just a fashion parade. Anyhow, we will see what the driving and laptimes are like on each race, and judge from that. Maybe we will be surprised!
I do believe that FW won't be around next year, they would have to find another manufacturere with a car to flog? I can't see Mazda wanting to be involved for a second year running, and depending on how this first Championship is judged by the motorsport press and the public, will another manufacturer want to put its name to it?
>> Edited by Mrs Button on Monday 26th April 19:35
Mrs Button said:
I was one of the 50 finalists in Formula Woman and I can categorically state that not all of the girls chosen are there because of driving talent. *SOME* of them are, but others are there because of pure TV reasons. They are definitely not all the cream of novice female driving talent in the UK though.
I went into FW truly believing that they *had* to choose the best drivers, and I came away from it very disillusioned and pissed off at myself for being so gullible. So did several of the other eliminees.
The crap that went on during the eliminations week was unreal, however a confidentiality agreement prevents me from talking about it. I live for the day when that agreement runs out.
And it's not sour grapes either...I know I'm good on a track, I just didn't have anything that the TV people wanted.
The search for "female singing stars" by Mike Stock to release a "Formula Woman album" to tie in with this championship just makes me feel more and more that this is just a moneyspinner for the organisers.
Not all of the girls are photogenic either so it's not just a fashion parade. Anyhow, we will see what the driving and laptimes are like on each race, and judge from that. Maybe we will be surprised!
I do believe that FW won't be around next year, they would have to find another manufacturere with a car to flog? I can't see Mazda wanting to be involved for a second year running, and depending on how this first Championship is judged by the motorsport press and the public, will another manufacturer want to put its name to it?
>> Edited by Mrs Button on Monday 26th April 19:35
I am sure you will get the chance "Mrs Button" to prove yourself! I would take that agreement to a solicitor! What happened to free speech! It is not the official secrets act!
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