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[Myoclonic Jerk]

My point is that Marussia making 10 million out of a billion dollar business is the real problem. Horner is a tool whining because the rules they agreed to got them stuck with a shit engine.

If the rules harm the sport there's no doubt that they should be revisited. I'm sure things like that happened before.

Teams who benefit will surely oppose taking corrective measures. Otherwise, and in this specific example, we can face up to 2 or 3 more years of absolute Mercedes dominance. Does ANYONE bar Mercedes wants that? And I mean ANYONE, not just the teams.

 

[Myoclonic Jerk]

I wouldn't take anything a losing team has to say about the rules having to change for the better of the sport seriously.

Nor would I take a winning team saying that everything is good as it is seriously.

Horner's musings are absolutely worthless. If Red Bull are so concerned about the smaller teams, they should get the contracts re-negotiated. Or at least be open to it. Doesn't look like that's a big priority for them, though.

Strange.

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

F1 should focus on getting big names. Approach companies like GE, Google, Microsoft, Toyota, Porsche, Uniliver, Wall Street shitheads.. Let those with deep pockets lead the sport, let them lead the pinnacle of motor-racing and technology industry, lift the cost caps, relax the regulations, let them innovate, and the let them spend as much as they want. We need them to, so they can invent shit that we can get few years later.

 

[kiyomi]

F1 should focus on getting big names. Approach companies like GE, Google, Microsoft, Toyota, Porsche, Uniliver, Wall Street shitheads.. Let those with deep pockets lead the sport, let them lead the pinnacle of motor-racing and technology industry, lift the cost caps, relax the regulations, let them innovate, and the let them spend as much as they want. We need them to, so they can invent shit that we can get few years later.

Those companies don't need to compete in a morally and financially corrupt sport just to innovate. I mean, fuck it, Google just rented out a NASA airfield for the next 60 years to house their wacky experiments.

We've had big names in F1 before, the likes of Toyota and Honda competing. They spent a ton of money, with little to no innovation, and got nowhere competitively.

 

[Vivalaraza]

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

F1 should focus on getting big names. Approach companies like GE, Google, Microsoft, Toyota, Porsche, Uniliver, Wall Street shitheads.. Let those with deep pockets lead the sport, let them lead the pinnacle of motor-racing and technology industry, lift the cost caps, relax the regulations, let them innovate, and the let them spend as much as they want. We need them to, so they can invent shit that we can get few years later.

Deep pockets alone don't lead to innovation.

 

[Juicy Bob]

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

Minardi, Jordan and Super Aguri were some of the most popular teams in their eras because of the fact that they were plucky underdogs.

Formula 1 has never been just about the race at the front. The battles that go on all year throughout the field are what make this sport so interesting. That's why Bianchi's points finish at Monaco was one of the most memorable results of the last few years.

 

[nature boy]

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

F1 should focus on getting big names. Approach companies like GE, Google, Microsoft, Toyota, Porsche, Uniliver, Wall Street shitheads.. Let those with deep pockets lead the sport, let them lead the pinnacle of motor-racing and technology industry, lift the cost caps, relax the regulations, let them innovate, and the let them spend as much as they want. We need them to, so they can invent shit that we can get few years later.

TERRIBLE idea.

 

[Mastah]

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

F1 should focus on getting big names. Approach companies like GE, Google, Microsoft, Toyota, Porsche, Uniliver, Wall Street shitheads.. Let those with deep pockets lead the sport, let them lead the pinnacle of motor-racing and technology industry, lift the cost caps, relax the regulations, let them innovate, and the let them spend as much as they want. We need them to, so they can invent shit that we can get few years later.

They don't want to. Now what?

 

[Adam Scott Aukerman]

TERRIBLE idea.

He's clearly living in opposites land.

 

[hadareud]

Sounds like a nice idea, but why would any of those companies want to enter Formula 1?

It makes no economic sense and their shareholders wouldn't stand for it. The cost restrictions are not the reason why there's no Google team in F1.

The reason why Red Bull are there is because their entire marketing strategy is built around sport. And their eccentric owner doesn't have to answer to shareholders, it's a limited company.

The smaller teams have always been important to F1, and they still are now. It should be easier to enter and stay in F1 than it is.

They will have to find a way to make it work, or else the sport will be dead sooner rather than later.

Having the car manufacturers there is great, but even aren't guaranteed to hang around forever. As soon as the next economic crisis hits (or if any bad business decisions affect them specifically) some of them will be out. We saw it with Honda a couple of times, we saw it with Renault a couple of times and we saw it with Toyota, too.

And when you only have 5 teams, losing 1 or 2 is a death blow.

 

[Dilly]

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

F1 should focus on getting big names. Approach companies like GE, Google, Microsoft, Toyota, Porsche, Uniliver, Wall Street shitheads.. Let those with deep pockets lead the sport, let them lead the pinnacle of motor-racing and technology industry, lift the cost caps, relax the regulations, let them innovate, and the let them spend as much as they want. We need them to, so they can invent shit that we can get few years later.

Everything about this post is the exact opposite in reality.

 

[Zeknurn]

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

F1 should focus on getting big names. Approach companies like GE, Google, Microsoft, Toyota, Porsche, Uniliver, Wall Street shitheads.. Let those with deep pockets lead the sport, let them lead the pinnacle of motor-racing and technology industry, lift the cost caps, relax the regulations, let them innovate, and the let them spend as much as they want. We need them to, so they can invent shit that we can get few years later.

I didn't know Bernie had a gaf account.

 

[Addnan]

Big names don't want to come last, someone has to come last. Honestly that is one of the reasons for having small teams, to make shitty Ferrari not look like the worst team on the grid.

 

[kharma45]

Losing the small teams would be awful.

 

[itsgreen]

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

 

[Ark]

Genuine question: Is the sport/teams raking in more or less money since they banned Tobacco advertising? Because I'm assuming we won't reach those levels again, but I could be totally wrong.

Also; Webber told Button to just "get on with it" and sign that sports car contract. I'd link the tweet but I'm on my phone.

 

[nature boy]

Genuine question: Is the sport/teams raking in more or less money since they banned Tobacco advertising? Because I'm assuming we won't reach those levels again, but I could be totally wrong.

Yes, the sport is definitely making more money and prize money has gone up considerably (3x I believe), so I'm pretty sure it has offset the tobacco money.

 

[NHale]

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

F1 should focus on getting big names. Approach companies like GE, Google, Microsoft, Toyota, Porsche, Uniliver, Wall Street shitheads.. Let those with deep pockets lead the sport, let them lead the pinnacle of motor-racing and technology industry, lift the cost caps, relax the regulations, let them innovate, and the let them spend as much as they want. We need them to, so they can invent shit that we can get few years later.

You just destroyed F1 with your plan. Congrats!

 

[kiyomi]

I didn't know Bernie had a gaf account.

lol

 

[Shaneus]

Genuine question: Is the sport/teams raking in more or less money since they banned Tobacco advertising? Because I'm assuming we won't reach those levels again, but I could be totally wrong.

Also; Webber told Button to just "get on with it" and sign that sports car contract. I'd link the tweet but I'm on my phone.

I got ya back:


Relevant:

 

[DD]

Ron Dennis on how the Hamilton-Alonso row compared to Senna and Prost

 

[Zeknurn]

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/formula-one/30020798

Alice Powell hopeful of Caterham F1 debut in Abu Dhabi

British female driver Alice Powell is hopeful of making her debut at a Formula 1 weekend with Caterham at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix later this month.
Powell's grandfather is among a number of private investors who are trying to raise enough money to seal her a seat.
Caterham went into administration in October and the administrators recently launched a 'crowd-funding' project.
"If I got to race in free practice for Caterham that would be amazing," ex-Formula 3 driver Powell, 21, said.

Romain just posted this but deleted it promptly after.

 

[itsgreen]

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/formula-one/30020798

That's cute but she has got to get her superlicense first. Not going to happen.

 

[Shaneus]

Romain just posted this but deleted it promptly after.

Ooh. Meant to be official after Abu Double?

 

[Psychotext]

That's cute but she has got to get her superlicense first. Not going to happen.

You don't need a superlicence for practice. Or rather, if you do there must be ways around it, because Roberto Merhi didn't have a superlicence when he did FP1 at Monza.

 

[Risgroo]

I've played F1 2014 for a few hours, and fucking hell it's bad. Everything about the handling feels off, stiff and lifeless, even with a wheel. There's more wheelspin than in 2013, but it just feels so bad in the corners. Incredibly disappointing, even though I had low expectations :/

I also went back to F1 2011, and it's still great! Sure, it's not realistic, but the cars feel tricky and fun to drive. GAF1 league/Fastest Sector(hah!) revival pls.

 

[Nicktendo86]

Honestly, we don't need small teams. They only make up the numbers and they are bad for the sport.

F1 should focus on getting big names. Approach companies like GE, Google, Microsoft, Toyota, Porsche, Uniliver, Wall Street shitheads.. Let those with deep pockets lead the sport, let them lead the pinnacle of motor-racing and technology industry, lift the cost caps, relax the regulations, let them innovate, and the let them spend as much as they want. We need them to, so they can invent shit that we can get few years later.

...oh dear.

 

[itsgreen]

You don't need a superlicence for practice. Or rather, if you do there must be ways around it, because Roberto Merhi didn't have a superlicence when he did FP1 at Monza.

I believe you do.

He was Euro F3 champion in 2011 though and 3rd in FR3.5.

If you are (recent) champion in a feeder series, you'll get one. If you complete 300km in a F1 car, and are fast, you get one.

Merhi got dispensation. But he has shown how to drive a car.

She hasn't driven in 2014 according to Wikipedia and was 19th in GP3 in 2012, 31st in 2013... She isn't going to get it if she doesn't drive 300km in a F1 car and is fast.

 

[Psychotext]

Yes, but the point was that there are ways around it (he still doesn't have a superlicence)... and money is usually one way around most things.

 

[itsgreen]

Yes, but the point was that there are ways around it (he still doesn't have a superlicence)... and money is usually one way around most things.

She isn't going to get it. Not a chance. Like none. Unless she does 300km in a F1 car very very soon she won't get it. Even if she'd bring 20 million bucks instead of the 35k pounds her grandfather has pledged.

Safety issue. Merhi is 'fast' and to some level has proven he could drive a fast Formula car fast. She has not. At all.

She would be endangering the rest of the field.

 

[Psychotext]

A superlicence? No, of course not. Who suggested she would?

But FP1, I don't think it's out of the question to be honest. Sure as hell wouldn't take millions. That said, I don't think it's going to happen for many reasons (not least other, more suitable drivers having access to more money).

 

[Nicktendo86]

So rumour has it Alonso is taking a few people with him to McLaren, possible part of the reason for the recent McLaren clear out?

Eric B also seems pretty confident that McLaren's downward spiral is now over and the team is now on the up. I must admit I didn't see them being faster than Ferrari and Red Bull at any point this season and they seem to be at the moment.

 

[Myoclonic Jerk]

Woow! seems like I pissed off a lot of people! lol

First of all, I think we all agree that dynamics of sports, like everything else, do change from time to time. I don't see F1 being different.

If small teams made sense, in my opinion, they don't anymore. F1 has lost its focus and lacking direction for almost a decade now. All these artificially imposed changes to boost up "excitement" tells you a lot. Is it a sport? Is it a marketing and business hub? Is it a huge R&D lab? Is it all of that at once? No one really knows, that's why each team goes into a slightly different direction and then a war breaks and the team with more muscle pulls the sport into its direction.

One of the examples showing how adhoc the decision making in F1 is was the engines. The push was behind "going green", and "road cars relevance". So i'm subscribing to that, and assuming that this is the direction of the new F1. I stand by my point. Small teams are actually useless in this new approach, they'll contribute nearly nothing, and they will force big teams to cut their spendings, thus, hindering "innovation" so that they can survive.

Now, if it's only a sport. Then it's completely different story. A lot of things could've been done differently that small teams would've been able to thrive.

Let's be honest. Under the current situation, and for almost 2 decades, smaller teams got no shot at winning a race let alone a title! So why even bother if you can't even aim to be anywhere near the podium? In the 70's and 80's and the decades before, it was completely different. But do we want to look that far back? Which only proves my point even more, that sports do change with time, and what made since 10, 20, or 30 years ago, might not make sense now.

And now to answer some of your replies

Minardi, Jordan and Super Aguri were some of the most popular teams in their eras because of the fact that they were plucky underdogs.

Formula 1 has never been just about the race at the front. The battles that go on all year throughout the field are what make this sport so interesting. That's why Bianchi's points finish at Monaco was one of the most memorable results of the last few years.

First of all, I think you're exaggerating with the importance of Bianchi's point. It was good for him and his team of course. but for the sport? I don't think anyone has noticed it or still remembers it if they did.

And where did those teams you're talking about go? They couldn't survive staying in the sport financially although they had a huge potential. So it goes hand-in-hand. It's not enough to be smart. you need financial strength to back it up. I agree that money doesn't immediately mean innovation. But if you have strong financial backing the potential is definitely much bigger to actually invent something. R&D needs money. I don't think anyone can argue that!

Please correct me if I'm wrong

TERRIBLE idea.

Atleast I'm trying. Unlike the FiA

They don't want to. Now what?

your awesome insight is based on what? Some teams want to lift the ban on testing and even stop talking about budget caps like Ferrari and Redbull, and some teams are indifferent, and others are dying or died begging for cost caps.

So "now what?"? you tell me

Everything about this post is the exact opposite in reality.

True, if the focus was actually on cutting cost and take measures instead of saying something and acting in the opposite direction. Like the poorly-planned introduction of the V6's.. The introduction of these engines has changed the dynamics of the sports. Inevitably it will go again to a spending war now. If Mercedes doesn't agree on relaxing the restrictions, the teams will vote for a complete flexibility for 2016 onwards. Now if we lost 2 small teams, you're risking middle-sized teams biting the dust if that actually happens

I didn't know Bernie had a gaf account.

I'll take that as a compliment. I wish I had a fraction of his wealth though

You just destroyed F1 with your plan. Congrats!

F1 IS destroyed now. They're already on survival mode. Contractually there has to be 20 cars on the grid. That's what all the circuits have signed for. If they don't get it, you're gonna face contracts negotiations which will lead to shrinking the income of the sport.


Given the state the sport is in now, I think even FIFA can do a better job running F1

Apologies if I offended anyone with my opinions

 

[Ark]

I cannot believe you have to ask why small teams even bother. There's this thing called passion, and everyone in the F1 circus has bundles of it. F1 is in the midst of an identity crisis, yes, but that will not be solved by opening up the rules. All that will do is dramatically increase the gap between the works teams and privateers, whilst also slowly bleeding the smaller teams out of the door.

I'd be inclined to agree with you if Toyota, Ford, BMW, VAG, Honda, etc were all lining up ready to enter & fund a works effort. But they aren't.

Most importantly, small teams produce talent. The next generations of drivers, engineers, managers, designers, specialists, etc all cone through the lower-end of the grid. For arguments sake; how many drivers have jumped into a car for a team that has such huge global branding? The only one I can think of is Hamilton - and he's the absolute exception.

F1's problems would be solved overnight if Bernie and CVC woke up tomorrow and realised that the year is 2014, not 2004.

 

[DD]

I cannot believe you have to ask why small teams even bother. There's this thing called passion, and everyone in the F1 circus has bundles of it. F1 is in the midst of an identity crisis, yes, but that will not be solved by opening up the rules. All that will do is dramatically increase the gap between the works teams and privateers, whilst also slowly bleeding the smaller teams out of the door.

I'd be inclined to agree with you if Toyota, Ford, BMW, VAG, Honda, etc were all lining up ready to enter & fund a works effort. But they aren't.

Most importantly, small teams produce talent. The next generations of drivers, engineers, managers, designers, specialists, etc all cone through the lower-end of the grid. For arguments sake; how many drivers have jumped into a car for a team that has such huge global branding? The only one I can think of is Hamilton - and he's the absolute exception.

F1's problems would be solved overnight if Bernie and CVC woke up tomorrow and realised that the year is 2014, not 2004.

*and Magnussen.

 

[Ark]

*and Magnussen.

Oh yeah. He does count, but to be fair the circumstances are somewhat different - given that McLaren has been going through a big shift over the pastvtwobseasons, heck they still don't have a title sponsor.

 

[zomgbbqftw]

It's not Mercedes' fault that nobody thought to introduce proper spending regulations before the engines that everyone knew were going to be expensive and a significant factor in success. They have a big budget, nobody told them to not spend it, so they spent it.

As I said, it is time for the FIA to call their bluff and put a cap onto the PU cost. MB engines have four customers, MB, Williams, Lotus and Force India, over the next five years the engine is supposed to be in operation, a maximum fee of £10m from each team per year yields a revenue of roughly £200m, minus the cost of sale exclusive of amortised R&D it would be a gross profit of around £140m over the five year period. If MB can't return a profit after R&D from a gross profit of around that figure then something clearly went wrong in their development stage. My point is that Mercedes are putting significant upwards pressure on spending for engines. It means independent engine suppliers are left unable to compete, the likes of Cosworth would never be able to make a competitive engine under the current spending rules and see any kind of RoI and that's the problem. The FIA basically got scared when Mercedes threatened to quit if they weren't allowed to buy the title this season and the next by outspending all of the other teams on the PU and now mid-table teams are all fucked because they are forced to spend £30-40m per season buying PUs which is 3-4x higher than the V8 era, and there is reduced competition now that Cosworth and Toyota are out of the game. Next season at least Honda are back and in 2016 their exclusivity clause ends with McLaren so hopefully it will yield some downwards pressure on prices via competition.

They knew exactly what they were doing. This is not about budget. Marussia is not out of F1 because engines were too expensive, they're out of it because they didn't get any of the money that F1 makes. This public farce between them is about nothing more than Mercedes being significantly better than the others.

I'm much more interested in the fight for the title, I don't know how anyone still has the patience to deal with this crap. Fuck Horner, fuck Totto and fuck the lot of them.

They literally are out of the game because they can't spend half of their operating budget on buying engines. Mercedes overspending forced the other engine suppliers to overspend as well. They are the root cause of teams going bankrupt.

Wait, Merc are now being given blamed for the teams that are struggling? Of the 5, they are only supplying 1 team this year and 2 next year!

Except that the Mercedes V6 is the cheapest of all...

It's the upwards spending pressure that Mercedes caused with the current V6 hybrid that has led to higher overall prices from all three (soon four) of the engine suppliers and locked out independent engine suppliers as well who would not be able to get a decent RoI. I love that Hamilton is finally at a team that is capable of winning the WDC and I love that he looks likely to win, but Mercedes effectively telling the FIA that they would either be allowed to buy the 2015 WCC/WDC or leave was clearly not good for the sport because smaller teams are now being crushed under the weight of the massive Mercedes PU R&D budget and the massive upwards pressure they applied to Ferrari and Renault to keep up. Not having a spending cap on the PU has been almost fatal for F1, now the FIA needs to have the balls to tell Mercedes and the other engine suppliers to put up or shut up and bring in a purchase price cap.

 

[Diablo Rosso]

One change I think could be made to mix things up is that in the Constructors Championship, to score points both cars have to finish the race. So the first team to get both cars across the line gets 25 points, second 18 etc. That way, for the lesser teams to score points it means that less cars have to retire.

 

[nature boy]

Atleast I'm trying. Unlike the FiA

That's true, but there's something you're missing:

Big companies aren't in F1 for passion or for tradition: it's for marketing.

F1 is one of the few sports that has a worldwide appeal, and one that reaches people with deep(er) pockets, so it's a very attractive proposition.

But these companies look at their ROI and sooner or later they are going to say "we're not getting our bang for our buck" and out they go. We've seen sponsors in successful cars leaving the sport because they didn't feel it was worthwhile anymore (Vodafone).

Now imagine we have only big companies and manufacturers in F1. Do you really think any company that's at the back of the grid is going to stay for long? Of course not, it's not their core business and there's always sponsorship opportunities in other sports, so why destroy the brand? Or do you see Mercedes as a back marker brand?
There have been rumors some people with a seat in the Mercedes boardroom aren't particularly fond of the F1 program - sooner or later they'll replace their CEO with someone who might not care about F1 and then what happens to all the teams who depend on Mercedes one way or another?

The small teams' core business is F1 - I don't think Force India or Sauber have any other significant business they can rely upon if they left F1. So if they have a stable financial model - and they didn't this year because costs (not just the PU itself, but also integrating it into their cars) have gone up but their income hasn't - they can become sustainable and generate some profit.
So that's why it's a TERRIBLE idea to give in to big brands' demands - they're never in it for the long term.

 

[massivekettle]

[...]

Mate, you got it wrong. Ferrari and Renault insisted for V6Ts, not Mercedes. Mercedes did their part to make it affordable by making their PU the cheapest available.

I am sure that Renault and Ferrari probably spent in the same ballpark as Mercedes. Besides, whilst Mercedes was busy making a great PU for 2014 onwards, Renault was reaping the benefits of all the R&D they spent on the 2010-2013 units (because they clearly had the best engine during those years).

Little reminder:

http://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2011/06/future-f1-engines-compromise-in-the-air/

As expected the F1 Commission, which met today, has delayed the introduction of a new engine formula to 2014, rather than 2013.

And compromise seems to have been reached on the layout, with the 1.6 litre turbocharged engines likely to be V6 rather than in-line 4 cylinders, to which Ferrari was vehemently opposed, among others.

This looks like a sensible compromise to me. I was struck by the strength of opposition from fans to the 4 cylinder units at the recent FOTA Fans Forum we hosted in Montreal.
As far as I know, the other elements of the new engine package which the FIA were so keen to see, such as the potent energy regeneration systems known as ERS, have been maintained. The compromise package will now be presented to the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council for approval.

There had been suggestions before the meeting that Bernie Ecclestone may seek to embarrass FIA president Jean Todt over the issue, as happened recently with the U

Turn over the Bahrain Grand Prix, by suggesting that the vote by which the 4 cylinder engines had been agreed had not been carried out correctly. But compromise was in the air today and the outcome seems reasonable for the sport.
It is still an exciting challenge for the engineers and will keep F1 at the sharp end of technology, whilst also putting energy regeneration at the heart of the story.

The solution is palatable to Ferrari – whose legendary V6 turbos powered Gilles Villeneuve in the 1980s – and Mercedes as well as Renault, who had threatened to leave the sport if it didn’t move to small turbo engines. Cosworth is a versatile engine builder with experience of engines of all sizes with and without turbos. For them it will come down to a cost analysis of customers and price point versus development costs.
The compromise package is likely to be a hot topic among fans at next week’s UK edition of the FOTA Fans Forum, which is taking place at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking

 

[Ark]

One change I think could be made to mix things up is that in the Constructors Championship, to score points both cars have to finish the race. So the first team to get both cars across the line gets 25 points, second 18 etc. That way, for the lesser teams to score points it means that less cars have to retire.

I actually really like this idea.

 

[Juicy Bob]

First of all, I think you're exaggerating with the importance of Bianchi's point. It was good for him and his team of course. but for the sport? I don't think anyone has noticed it or still remembers it if they did.

I honestly don't think I'm exaggerating at all. Just like when Webber scored fifth place on his debut at Melbourne in 2002. People remember that and Bianchi finishing ninth in Monaco, but I bet you now no one remembers of the top of their head who finished fourth in Aus 2002 or eighth in Monaco 2014.

A small points finish by a small team can be a bigger achievement than a podium or win for a big team. Considering Bianchi's points for Marussia in Monaco finally broke the four-and-a-half-year drought of points finishes for the three expansion teams in 2010, that was a big fucking deal and would've made a massive difference to Marussia next year had they been able to survive.

And where did those teams you're talking about go? They couldn't survive staying in the sport financially although they had a huge potential. So it goes hand-in-hand. It's not enough to be smart. you need financial strength to back it up. I agree that money doesn't immediately mean innovation. But if you have strong financial backing the potential is definitely much bigger to actually invent something. R&D needs money. I don't think anyone can argue that!

Please correct me if I'm wrong

Jordan could've survived as Jordan, but Eddie decided that the writing was on the wall and thought it best to sell the team to ensure its long-term survival. As for Minardi, they spent the best part of a full decade as the slowest team on the grid but were able to survive year after year and that's partly why they became loved so much.

A massive budget isn't everything. After all, look at how much Toyota underachieved during their time in F1 or how poor Ferrari have been in recent years, given their finances and resources. I've seen plenty more people lamenting the loss of Super Aguri and Minardi and Marussia from the grid than Toyota and BMW, and that's got to tell you something.

 

[Keyser Soze]

Marcus Ericsson has terminated his contract with Caterham,

TERMINATION OF CATERHAM F1 CONTRACT

“Following recent events re Caterham Sports Limited and 1 MRT Sdn Bhd, my adviser Eje Elgh and I have decided to terminate, with immediate effect, all agreements connecting me to the Caterham F1 team. This is a sad day as we have greatly enjoyed working with the team through a difficult and tough season.

I wish to thank Colin Kolles, Manfredi Ravetto, Cyril Abiteboul and every other member of the Caterham F1 team for your trust and confidence in me, and for making my first Formula 1 season an educational and unforgettable experience. In addition, I thank my good friend and teammate Kamui Kobayashi for being an inspiring benchmark throughout the year, and hope to see him back on the track soon.”

http://marcusericsson.com/news/termination-of-caterham-f1-contract/

 

[Psychotext]

Hope no-one wanted to have dinner with him for that crowdfunding thing.

 

[Keyser Soze]

Hope no-one wanted to have dinner with him for that crowdfunding thing.

Kobayashi should be the only option for that anyway!

 

[kiyomi]

I actually really like this idea.

It's good until you remember that the lower teams generally have poor reliability records themselves and half the time seem incapable of delivering 2 cars to the finish line.

It also encourages cars that may not be in complete working order to be kept out on the track, which probably isn't the smartest idea.

 

[TCRS]

And compromise seems to have been reached on the layout, with the 1.6 litre turbocharged engines likely to be V6 rather than in-line 4 cylinders, to which Ferrari was vehemently opposed, among others.

in-line 4 cylinders

the day we get 4 cylinder engines is the day I quit this beautiful sport. I can barely stomach these lame V6s.

 

[DD]

Losail wants to host a GP in 2016 or 17:

 

[fu3lfr3nzy]

the day we get 4 cylinder engines is the day I quit this beautiful sport. I can barely stomach these lame V6s.

Because we never had 4 cylinder Turbo engines in F1 amirite?

 

[DD]

A different point of view (not that I agree or disagree, but...) about the crysis: http://t.co/KZH62QGlTk

 

[Psychotext]

Losail wants to host a GP in 2016 or 17[/IMG]

What's Losail?