Bernie Ecclestone
Discussion
Anyone watching the GP? Did you catch that intervew with Bernie Ecclestone in the pre-race coverage?
What is that guy on? He never misses an opportunity to knock Silverstone with comments like "Jackie Stewart is out here [in Shanghai, in his role of chairman of the BRDC] and maybe he'll look aound and see how things should be done" and "yes, well people seem to like these old airfield circuits so I suppose we'll keep them" and "people seem to like tramping around in the mud".
Jim Rosental then says "surely though, the British GP is very important and I know that if you turn round and say there will be no more British GP then you'll be a very unpopular person with our viewers back in the UK" to which Bernie replies "I'm not running for mayor".
Rosental then moves on to the fact that Minardi and Jordan are struggling financially and may fold, and Jaguar are pulling out of F1 due to cost. His response is that if you enter a high stakes poker game without the cash to ante up then you shouldn't be there. And furthermore, no-one would miss Minardi if they left.
What the hell is this guy on? He doesn't care about the fans, he doesn't care about the teams either.
I think Ecclestone has done some great things for F1, lifting it from the dark days when races were held in hotel car parks (Caesar's Palace in the 70's springs to mind) to the force it is today, but surely he is now harming the 'sport' with his stanglehold .
>>> Edited by JonRB on Sunday 26th September 08:06
What is that guy on? He never misses an opportunity to knock Silverstone with comments like "Jackie Stewart is out here [in Shanghai, in his role of chairman of the BRDC] and maybe he'll look aound and see how things should be done" and "yes, well people seem to like these old airfield circuits so I suppose we'll keep them" and "people seem to like tramping around in the mud".
Jim Rosental then says "surely though, the British GP is very important and I know that if you turn round and say there will be no more British GP then you'll be a very unpopular person with our viewers back in the UK" to which Bernie replies "I'm not running for mayor".
Rosental then moves on to the fact that Minardi and Jordan are struggling financially and may fold, and Jaguar are pulling out of F1 due to cost. His response is that if you enter a high stakes poker game without the cash to ante up then you shouldn't be there. And furthermore, no-one would miss Minardi if they left.
What the hell is this guy on? He doesn't care about the fans, he doesn't care about the teams either.
I think Ecclestone has done some great things for F1, lifting it from the dark days when races were held in hotel car parks (Caesar's Palace in the 70's springs to mind) to the force it is today, but surely he is now harming the 'sport' with his stanglehold .
>>> Edited by JonRB on Sunday 26th September 08:06
I woke up to hear the commentators screaming
"THIS IS LIKE FORMULA FORD...FANTASTIC!!"
I sit up, look at the TV, expecting to be greated by a great race. But no, the same boring procession with a few overtaking moves. Hardly Formula Ford
Why do the commentators treat the public like tw@ts? Why do they feel the need to justify a crap race by saying "what a fantastic race blah blah" when it most clearly has not been?
"THIS IS LIKE FORMULA FORD...FANTASTIC!!"
I sit up, look at the TV, expecting to be greated by a great race. But no, the same boring procession with a few overtaking moves. Hardly Formula Ford
Why do the commentators treat the public like tw@ts? Why do they feel the need to justify a crap race by saying "what a fantastic race blah blah" when it most clearly has not been?
Ecclestone is (rightly IMHO) using posturing tactics to get Silverstione developed into a world class facility - rather than just a world class track - which is all it is at the moment.
All the latest facilities have strong government backing & F1 is a global showcase. Bernie is angling for UK Govt. support.
I like to see Ferrari win - been a massive fan of them all through the dark days in the '90s. But Shuey winning has become so regular this season that F1 has been very boring. If he is going to win he needs to be challenged for it.
>> Edited by gregmund on Sunday 26th September 09:14
All the latest facilities have strong government backing & F1 is a global showcase. Bernie is angling for UK Govt. support.
I like to see Ferrari win - been a massive fan of them all through the dark days in the '90s. But Shuey winning has become so regular this season that F1 has been very boring. If he is going to win he needs to be challenged for it.
>> Edited by gregmund on Sunday 26th September 09:14
thebluemonkey said:
gregmund can you remove the hint about who didn't win please ? Just so other people don't get it spoilt for the re run
Removed - worth watching the re-run quite an exciting race. Jim Clark won, Stirling Moss was second and James Hunt third
>> Edited by gregmund on Sunday 26th September 09:19
F1 is now for non-ethusiasts. Think about it, the people that like F1 know sweet FA about cars. If I watch it at all I just watch the beginning to see the cars, the snatch and the motorhomes. I then turn the TV off and sit staring at the wall as that is far more stimulating than the Schuey show.
Also there are an inordinate amount of women who claim to like F1 - so it's comparable to syncronised swimming, Eastenders and 24 hour knitting.
dan
Also there are an inordinate amount of women who claim to like F1 - so it's comparable to syncronised swimming, Eastenders and 24 hour knitting.
dan
I haven’t given Bernie 1p of my hard earned in over four years now and frankly I see no reason to change this.
The blinding arrogance of this man is so adequately demonstrated by the originator of this thread. It is hardly conducive to being lifted out of a few hundred quid in my opinion.
I always enjoyed Brands Hatch when ‘Manse’ was on a charge crammed in with the other 200 thousand or Donington for one of the greatest races there has ever been, Silverstone though not really up to much as track is ok day out as well as long as ythere is a race to watch.
The problem is not the circuits it’s the dud racing with a bunch of automatons driving the things. I for one would think cigarette advertising should be the driver’s duty, just think about Keke or ‘The shunt’ having a quick light up in the cockpit before the race with standard issue Honey at his side.
Boring, damn boring, roll on Le Mans
PS Jaguar, please please go back and win it again
The blinding arrogance of this man is so adequately demonstrated by the originator of this thread. It is hardly conducive to being lifted out of a few hundred quid in my opinion.
I always enjoyed Brands Hatch when ‘Manse’ was on a charge crammed in with the other 200 thousand or Donington for one of the greatest races there has ever been, Silverstone though not really up to much as track is ok day out as well as long as ythere is a race to watch.
The problem is not the circuits it’s the dud racing with a bunch of automatons driving the things. I for one would think cigarette advertising should be the driver’s duty, just think about Keke or ‘The shunt’ having a quick light up in the cockpit before the race with standard issue Honey at his side.
Boring, damn boring, roll on Le Mans
PS Jaguar, please please go back and win it again
An excellent thread, and a really good illustration of everything that is wrong with the UK. Ecclestone is spot on. This requires money to be invested, it is not however about money. Its about the final nails going in the coffin of Great (crap) Britain and the sooner the better. In comparison to almost anywhere else Silverstone is rubbish. It is indicative of the British "we were the best once " mentality. So all the thick people will hate Ecclestone if he scraps the British grand Prix. Good, with a swift injection of spin this can be turned into an election loser for his tonyness. 
There is a huge industry around motor racing in the UK it makes a massive contribution. Its time it was recognised and we had a world class theatre to display our skills. Ecclestone would do well to compare and contrast the contribution of the green community and the value of the green pound (almost nil). So why do we object to Ecclestone when he is single handedly responsible for roadbuilding in Northants recently and is a competant champion for motor racing worldwide.
Gazboy your point about waste is drivel. The carbon fibre noticeboard is essential F1 is not about short term el cheapo edition racing. Its the best and as such it required the following
Best technology
Best environment
Best people
Best image
The CF notice board is part of the package. Just one more thing that makes F1 stand out.
Alternatively we could employ John Prescot and start Formula crap.
Some soapboxes, everything dirty and falling apart, nothing organised, good punch up afterwards. Which would you prefer?
There is a huge industry around motor racing in the UK it makes a massive contribution. Its time it was recognised and we had a world class theatre to display our skills. Ecclestone would do well to compare and contrast the contribution of the green community and the value of the green pound (almost nil). So why do we object to Ecclestone when he is single handedly responsible for roadbuilding in Northants recently and is a competant champion for motor racing worldwide. Gazboy your point about waste is drivel. The carbon fibre noticeboard is essential F1 is not about short term el cheapo edition racing. Its the best and as such it required the following
Best technology
Best environment
Best people
Best image
The CF notice board is part of the package. Just one more thing that makes F1 stand out.
Alternatively we could employ John Prescot and start Formula crap.
Some soapboxes, everything dirty and falling apart, nothing organised, good punch up afterwards. Which would you prefer?
The DJ 27 said:
I woke up to hear the commentators screaming
"THIS IS LIKE FORMULA FORD...FANTASTIC!!"
Did make me laugh that
What will Allen be saying when there is only 7 teams? I think Ford has taken a correct and brave decision to pull out. Whoever buys Jaguar won't last long without £500 million being pumped in every year. I can see BOSS Formula doing quite well with all the cast off's around. Minardi would be better off in BOSS Formula anyway; at least they would run at the front.
nonegreen said:
An excellent thread, and a really good illustration of everything that is wrong with the UK. Ecclestone is spot on. This requires money to be invested, it is not however about money. Its about the final nails going in the coffin of Great (crap) Britain and the sooner the better. In comparison to almost anywhere else Silverstone is rubbish. It is indicative of the British "we were the best once " mentality. So all the thick people will hate Ecclestone if he scraps the British grand Prix. Good, with a swift injection of spin this can be turned into an election loser for his tonyness.
Gazboy your point about waste is drivel. The carbon fibre noticeboard is essential F1 is not about short term el cheapo edition racing. Its the best and as such it required the following
Best technology
Best environment
Best people
Best image
The CF notice board is part of the package. Just one more thing that makes F1 stand out.
Alternatively we could employ John Prescot and start Formula crap.
Some soapboxes, everything dirty and falling apart, nothing organised, good punch up afterwards. Which would you prefer?
In a nutshell.. good post!!
I watched the F3 race from Monza yesterday, but REALLY loved the Porsche cup racing going on in the rain. Great stuff, very watchable with a bunch of red misted nutters with too much money going at it in monsoon conditions. MORE PLEASE!!
Gazboy said:
It is a very wasteful sport too, look at some of the things in the pits, the BAR team had a notice board made from Carbon Fibre! Why spend £500 on CF when a 57p piece of plywood would have done the same job?
Actually not that wasteful. The teams airfreight everything outside of Europe and you pay by the kilo. Lightweight stuff can actually pay for itself many times over.
As regards Silverstone you only have to go to the US GP to realise how it can be done. The whole city was super organised, you get in and out so easily, the circuit is clean, facilities for spectators are first class. I'm sure it's like that around the world.
Personally I prefer Donington and Brands Hatch so moving the GP to those venues would be a good alternative to Silverstone.
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