F1 shoots itself in the foot

If ever there was an organization which knows how to shoot itself in the foot, it is the FIA. In the face of dwindling spectator numbers, the FIA mismanaged the Grand Prix in Brazil to the extent that there were loud boos from the crowd which was giving the event universal thumbs down.

The Brazil situation occurred when steady rain fell on the circuit, resulting in standing water and this was deemed by the FIA as too dangerous to have the usual standing start, so the entire field was to drone around, following the safety car, even though the drivers wanted the standing start.

What must not be forgotten is that the Formula 1 drivers are supposed to be the best drivers in the world, racing against each other in the best cars in the world. A true gladiatorial contest and pick your own lion.

The FIA then began stage-managing the race and stopping it twice with a delayed start, red flags and five safety car periods, after some drivers were caught out by the conditions, even though the majority of drivers wanted to continue racing.

This start-stop routine was being done under the mantle of “safety”, but do the spectators go there to watch “safety”? No, the spectators want derring do, wheel to wheel jousting to make for genuine 21st century heroes. But the FIA took it all away. “It’s too wet for you to play outside, so come in now.”

I am in no way denigrating the abilities of the current group of F1 pilots, but it takes real skill to handle the conditions experienced last Sunday. Eventual winner Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) even described the driving as “easy”, not putting a wheel wrong anywhere. Behind Hamilton were epic “saves” from Rosberg (Mercedes), Verstappen (Red Bull), Alonso (McLaren) and Vettel (Ferrari), mostly caused by poor visibility through the spray from the front runners. According to Pirelli, the extreme wet tyres evacuate 65 liters of water per second at 300 kph. However, when driving slowly, such as following the safety car, the volume of water expressed is much less.

So an eventful race went through to the full 71 laps with Hamilton an ‘easy’ winner, never being challenged at any stage. He said after the race, “Probably one of the easier ones, it was a very easy race generally. Honestly I didn’t have any spins, any moments, it was very straight forward.” Hamilton’s victory, his third in a succession, means he now trails Rosberg by 12 points with only Abu Dhabi, remaining.

Second was his team mate Rosberg, who was never looking like a champion all afternoon. In his defense, a crash would have meant he had no chance of securing the title, so caution was needed, but he looked timid in his approach to the race.

Man of the meeting was undoubtedly Max Verstappen who demonstrates an amazing talent every Grand Prix – and he is 19. What will he be like after he gets the key of the door?