FORMULA 1 - 2016

[MIKA27]

FORMULA 1 IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR?

A lot of people think that the fees for Formula 1 races are excessive and I tend to agree in some cases, but when you compare what a country gets for, say, an Olympic Games, or a World Cup, compared with what they need to invest, F1 seems to be a pretty cheap option. The problem is that for reasons that we can only guess at cities don’t want to give money to the Formula One group, while they are more than happy to pay the demands of the IOC or FIFA. It is billions on the one hand and tens of millions on the other. Why is that? Particularly when an Olympics or a World Cup are done and gone in just a few days, while F1 keeps coming back, year in, year out. TV audiences are not really the answer either. It seems to be more about civic ego: a Mayor or a Prime Minister can fluff up his feathers as having been the one to win the city the Olympics etc etc. The IOC and FIFA demand massive infrastructure investments and I suppose that might be part of the attraction as this forces cities to make changes that they want to make, rather than constantly putting them off. London, for example, has developed much of the old docklands that ought to have been done earlier, but the Olympics gave them the excuse. This creates jobs and visitors. Getting private enterprise to invest in these events is a tough call. There are the big sponsors, of course, but public-private partnerships for other things do not seem to be that successful. Perhaps they are and we just don’t hear about them.

Of late, however, I have being hearing whispers of new plans for a Formula 1 event in the Bay Area of California and, more specifically, down in the Santa Clara/San Jose area of Silicon Valley. It has been clear for a long time that F1 needs to get more races in the United States and , obviously the most likely places for the sport to visit and be successful are the two coasts, which have a rather more outward-looking attitude and would most appreciate F1’s European chic and glamour.

Sadly, attempts to have races in New Jersey, Long Beach and Anaheim have all flopped because of the amount of money that was being demanded, and because there are very few public bodies that can afford F1 scale money for a sporting event or which would deem such an event to be worth the cash being demanded. The race in Austin has got some state backing, but the state politicians are looking at cutting this back because it was all agreed by a different administration and the new folk don’t want to pay the money any longer. This is short-sighted but to be expected.

So how can an event be funded in the US? The only answer is really private money with, perhaps, a little bit of public money being used to facilitate things.This is the only model that will work, but who has the kind of money that is required for an F1 promoter these days? Right now, the city of Boston is planning for an IndyCar race around the streets, but the city is only paying for modifications for some of the “street furniture” and is recouping money, in theory, on renting the streets and the necessary services to the promoters. But then IndyCar fees are not that expensive so the promoter thinks it can make a go of it. This is great news for IndyCar, which needs a presence in urban areas on the East Coast.

Deals in Formula 1 are now running at levels at which even some despots cannot afford to pay for a race. Having said that, there are some very good examples of business models that do work for F1. They are complicated but they work. Canada, for example, is funded by at least four different levels of government, plus tourist boards and chambers of commerce. They all pull together to make the race happen. That has been true for some of the European races as well, notably Spain and Monza. Almost no races operate without a public subsidy. Silverstone is unique in that respect. Singapore is partially funded by an entrepreneur who owns shops, restaurants and hotels all around Singapore, with the government kicking in the rest, although if the race makes profits that money will go to the government. These have to be the kind of arrangements today and for new races to be successful one needs to find people to pay. There have beens one pretty imaginative ideas, but not all have worked. One that I thought was genius was using F1 to give drab places sparkle and by doing so raise the land/house prices. That was the logic behind the races in New Jersey, India and Korea

It was interesting, therefore, to see that Apple, which never sponsors sport, has been involved in the funding of the upcoming Super Bowl 50, to be held in the Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, home of the San Francisco 49ers, 40 miles south of the city itself.

The city of Santa Clara decided to create a tax-exempt public authority called the Stadium Authority, some years ago in order to build a new stadium. It cost $1.3 billion, which is a lot more than your average F1 track. Ninety percent of this money was funded by the sale of stadium assets, a hotel tax, the 49ers and the NFL. The City of Santa Clara contributed only $114 million in public contributions. Levi Strauss purchased the naming rights to the stadium for 20 years for $220 million.

Lots of local companies were involved in the Super Bowl bid. The Super Bowl 50 Host Committee, registered as a nonprofit organization, which is useful for tax purposes, has raised around $50 million for the bid from Bay Area companies and has already pledged $12 million to more than 100 local non-profits companies, aiming to be create a solid legacy and the image of being philanthropic, rather than just sucking up money. A lot of the donors want publicity but some just want to help the community but stay low-profile. It is all probably tax write-offs anyway…

But if these companies were willing to pay to bring the Super Bowl to the city, it is a safe bet that they would invest also in a motor racing facility that would benefit the local area. Such events are of huge value to local communities and the big technology companies want to help that. Apple does not use sponsorship because it considers its brand to be more valuable than the other brands is would be associating with.

Silicon Valley is the home of a string of the world’s largest high-tech corporations, as well as thousands of startup companies. The area attracts one-third of all venture capital investment in the United States and the cluster features glogal giants such as Apple, Google, Yahoo!, AMD, Cisco, eBay, Electronic Arts, Adobe Systems, Facebook, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Lockheed Martin, Oracle Corporation, Telsa, Symantec and many others.

In this world $500 million over a 10 year period would not be a huge amount of money and all that is really required is for someone to put it all together to give the area an association with the glitzy high-tech world of F1, which is sexy technology rather than nerdy technology for which the region is better known.

It would obviously help that there is a good chance that Alexander Rossi, a young Californian driver, could be racing, and that there will be Haas F1, part of an industrial empire, headquartered in California, albeit in the south.

There would, therefore, seem to be plenty of potential to create some kind of bayside park, a semi-permanent facility that would follow the lines on an Albert Park or a Circuit Gilles Villeneuve…

Time will tell.

[Lotusguy]

I remember the San Jose Grand Prix. They were a sporting and commercial disaster. Not sure how F1 would fare better.

[ArtVandalay]

Team orders to Barrichello from Ferrari..?

Yes...that's just too much politics in racing for me. Even if Ruben got his win (which he well deserved ) Schumacher would have been fine in his bid for championship. From then on is when things just started getting more about politics than racing. As an engineer I still love F1 though...I just miss the days of Hakkinen...

[MIKA27]

Yes...that's just too much politics in racing for me. Even if Ruben got his win (which he well deserved ) Schumacher would have been fine in his bid for championship. From then on is when things just started getting more about politics than racing. As an engineer I still love F1 though...I just miss the days of Hakkinen...

Mika Hakkinen is my idol - Hence my name on this very forum I wish he returned after his hiatus, I always had hoped.

Rubens Barrichello deserved at least one WDC IMO, he's still racing and I still follow him closely.

By the way, really appreciate your posts.

[MIKA27]

IS WILLIAMS SERIOUSLY CONTEMPLATING A RETURN TO HONDA POWER?

Williams’ Rob Smedley has played down suggestions the Grove team might be contemplating a shock switch from Formula 1’s pace setting Mercedes engines to Honda power.

The speculation first surfaced a few days ago, when Williams’ world champion of 1996, Damon Hill, suggested that moving away from Mercedes might be the only way the independent team can recapture its former glory.

“I sort of suggested to Claire (Williams) last year that the problem is they have the same engine as the Mercedes team,” he was quoted by Sky.

“I think as a team wanting to win the outright championship, strategically they would be better off with another engine and I think the only other engine you can think of is a Honda,” Hill added.

He acknowledged that Honda had a “catastrophic” return to F1 last year in works collaboration with McLaren, but thinks the Japanese carmaker will fight back.

“I could be wrong,” Hill continued, “but if they make the sort of impression they should do, then for Williams to get ahead of Ferrari and Mercedes they are going to have to have a different engine”.

But there may be more to the story than just Hill’s opinion as Auto Bild Motorsport claims that Williams is indeed contemplating the switch to Honda power, having finished third with Mercedes for the past two seasons in the new ‘power unit’ era.

Like McLaren-Honda, a collaboration between Williams and Honda would not be new, after the world championships of 1986 and 1987.

Last year, McLaren supremo Ron Dennis blocked Red Bull’s move to Honda power, but Auto Bild claims he is more open to the idea of a deal for Williams.

But Smedley, Williams’ lead engineer, played down the speculation, “First of all we are really, really happy with the level of service and the power unit itself that we get from Mercedes.”

Smedley admitted that Williams fell a development step behind the works Mercedes team last year, but indicated that the teams will return to parity for 2016.

“I think ultimately we are really happy,” he insisted. “They (Mercedes) are a very professional outfit and they supply an incredible power unit as well.”

MIKA: Honda, Mercedes, it really shouldn't matter....?

It would be the same if Williams switched to Honda and McLaren started winning with Honda power? I don't see the logic...

Same, Same IMO and besides, Mercedes Engines are up to form for now.

[MIKA27]

AZERBAIJAN GRAND PRIX UNDER THREAT AS OIL PRICES PLUMMET

Azerbaijan’s inaugural Formula 1 race could be in doubt, according to an economist.

The first F1 race on the historic streets of Baku is scheduled for June, but Azerbaijan’s economy is currently being battered by the collapsing price of oil.

“Azerbaijan is an oil country,” Ali Hasanov, a presidential advisor, told the state news agency Azertac. “The prices on oil and oil products have reduced threefold since early 2015. This means that Azerbaijan’s revenues reduced threefold.”

In the first 21 days of 2016, prices have plunged a further 25 per cent — a figure not seen since the global financial crisis.

In the same period, the Azerbaijan currency has lost 30 per cent of its value, with some predicting that the central bank’s reserves will run out within 3 months.

So according to Brazil’s UOL, some Azerbaijani authorities are pressing for the cancellation of the grand prix.

“They have to cut the state budget,” said economist Natig Jafarly, “as it is currently based on the price of a barrel at 50 dollars.”

Currently, the price stands at less than $27 per barrel.

Jafarly added: “The best way to save money at the moment is to cancel the grand prix and the (2017) Islamic Games.”

[MIKA27]

NEW GP2 SPONSOR FROM INDONESIA HAS EYES ON F1

The new sponsor of a GP2 team is tipped to eventually enter Formula 1 in the future.

The Spanish newspaper El Confidencial said a deal between the GP2 outfit Campos and Jangonya Ayan – KFC’s Indonesian branch – will be formally launched in Jakarta on February 26.

With the deal, Indonesian driver Sam Gelael is joining the team.

“It is a sponsor with formula one potential,” said Adrian Campos. “At the moment, they want to be in GP2 with us, and we want to be with them, of course.”

KFC is the world’s second largest fast food chain after McDonald’s.

[MIKA27]

ALONSO MANAGER CONFIDENT OF BETTER MCLAREN IN 2016

Fernando Alonso’s manager says he is confident McLaren-Honda will prepare a better car for the Spaniard to race in the 2016.

Having wooed Alonso from Ferrari, the Anglo-Japanese collaboration had an abysmal 2015 season, but the team and Honda are sure they will be competitive this year.

“For Fernando, he is still the best,” Alonso’s manager, Luis Garcia Abad, told Europa Press.

“Until we see the car on February 21 we cannot say anything. I suppose that this season will be better and they will do everything possible to be competitive,” he added.

Garcia Abad also said Alonso’s plans to found a professional cycling team are still on hold, “It won’t be this year, that’s for sure. If the circumstances are in favour yes, but it depends not only on us.”

[MIKA27]

MATESCHITZ BUYING SALZBURGRING FOR €3 MILLION

More details about Red Bull mogul and billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz’s latest motor racing acquisition have emerged.

Last September, we reported that Mateschitz, already the owner of the F1 circuit in Spielberg, is adding another Austrian track to his collection.

“I can confirm that,” said a spokesman for the Salzburgring, a 4.2km circuit east of Salzburg that hosted MotoGP until 1994. Kronen Zeitung, an Austrian newspaper, now has the details.

Mateschitz, 71, is buying the circuit with his company Distribution and Marketing, of which he is the 100 per cent owner.

“Currently we are still working on the last details of the contract, which is legally very complex,” said a representative of the Salzburg authorities.

Kronen Zeitung said the agreed price is about EUR 3 million.

[MIKA27]

MERHI HOPING TO STRIKE 2016 DEAL WITH MANOR

Last year’s rookie at Manor, Roberto Merhi is not giving up on Formula 1 and in fact believes he has a chance at a second year with the team which will now be powered by Mercedes.

El Confidencial, a Spanish newspaper, says the 24-year-old has been busily preparing for 2016, even though he lost his full-time Manor seat to the better-funded Alexander Rossi late last season.

“I have been swimming, running, cycling. In February I will do some karting,” he is quoted as saying.

But it is in February that his old F1 rivals will be eagerly shaping up to return to their cockpits, for eight days of pre-season testing prior to the first race in Melbourne. Manor has confirmed that it will be at the opening test in Barcelona.

When asked about the possibility that his F1 adventure will continue this year, Merhi – who is managed by former McLaren driver Mark Blundell – said: “It’s not closed. Not at all. There are a couple of things that are being watched, but nothing concrete yet.”

[MIKA27]

TORO ROSSO WILL NOT USE 2016 FERRARI ENGINE

Toro Rosso and Ferrari have played down media reports that are doing the rounds on Thursday.

A report in Italy suggested that although Toro Rosso will use Ferrari’s 2015-specification engine this year, there is a chance the Red Bull junior team will upgrade to the latest version of the Maranello-built ‘power unit’ later in the season.

Both sides moved to dismiss the reports.

“This is not even an issue for us,” Toro Rosso team boss Franz Tost told Speed Week. “I have no idea where it even comes from.”

And Ferrari spokesman Alberto Antonini added: “I’ve not even heard of that story. It would definitely not be easy to adapt a car to a different engine specification.”

[MIKA27]

Red Bull to unveil 2016 livery on February 17

Red Bull will unveil its 2016 livery at an exclusive event in London on February 17 in partnership with sponsor Puma, it won't however show off its new car.

The Milton Keynes based team, which is set to run Tag Heuer branded Renault engines this year, ended its sponsorship deal with title sponsor Infiniti and is therefore likely to run a tweaked livery.

The team has yet to confirm the actual launch date of its new challenger, the RB12, but it's expected they will simply roll it out on the first day of pre-season testing, as many teams plan to do due to the tight timescales involved.

Last year, the team chose not to unveil its official livery until the first race, instead opting to run a black and white camouflaged test livery. It's not known if they will repeat that this year, despite it proving popular amongst F1 fans.

[MIKA27]

'Very good news' coming from Renault - Red Bull

Renault are making positive noises over their 2016 gains according to Red Bull team manager Jonathan Wheatley, though he warned they will still be some way off Mercedes.

The French manufacturer is playing catch up after failing to make up much ground in 2015, whilst also reliability suffered.

With Red Bull sticking with Renault in '16, although branded as Tag Heuer, they are keen to see improvements and Wheatley is expecting gains given what he's been told by Renault.

"There's some very good news coming out of France at the moment," Wheatley told GPUpdate. "It's not going to be extraordinary, but they've made some gains – it's very positive.

"I think that's probably where we are at the moment. Is it going to be on the same level as the other [leading] power units in 2016? I think that's probably unlikely. But we only need to get close."

Meanwhile the team itself, despite months of uncertainty over its engine supply and indeed its future in Formula 1, is "well ahead of schedule" with its 2016 car according to Wheatley.

"It's been a challenge, but I think if there's any team capable of dealing with that it's us. The guys have done a fabulous job in the factory – amazing work over Christmas. Everything feels pretty much under control. We know what we're going to get and when we're going to get it.

"We were lucky in that the power unit that we ended up with [Renault] was the one that we knew very well, so the packaging [of the car] has been relatively straightforward in that respect. I was sat with the chief designer recently and things are well ahead of schedule."

[MIKA27]

'Impossible to say no' to McLaren job offer - Capito

Volkswagen motorsport boss Jost Capito says it was a tough decision to join McLaren, particularly as he's enjoying huge success with Volkswagen's Rally Team.

It was announced last week that the German would take up the position of chief executive office of the McLaren F1 team later this year, but only when VW find a suitable successor for his position.

Capito isn't new to F1, having previously worked with Sauber, but rallying is where he has enjoyed huge success, helping VW to win three successive titles from 2013-15.

Speaking to Autosport about his new role, which he might not take up until April or May, he said it was impossible to turn down given McLaren's history.

"Anybody who works in our industry knows that F1 is about McLaren and it's about Ferrari, and the chance to run the McLaren team is not one that you can say no to.

"For people who live in our world, it would be impossible to say no to this."

Whilst it might have been impossible to say no to, that didn't make it an easy decision for the 57-year-old.

"This was the most difficult [decision] in my career and it will be the biggest challenge in my career. But it's McLaren, and it's me – I am always interested in the big challenge."

[MIKA27]

Guenther Steiner clarifies Gene Haas' Ferrari chassis comments

Guenther Steiner has clarified comments made by Gene Haas about his American outfit's team having a better chassis than Ferrari this year.

Haas made extensive use of Ferrari's Maranello wind tunnel to develop its 2016 car, which will be powered by the Italian manufacturer. In November team owner Haas said the team's first car would "in some ways be better" than Ferrari's due to the design approach the American team had taken.

Steiner, the team principal for Haas this season, thinks his boss was misunderstood and had been referring to the amount of time the North Carolina-based squad had to work on development.

"What Gene meant is that our chassis is different in construction than the Ferrari and we've had more time to work on it," Steiner told the official F1 website. "But that fact is that right now it's merely a guess as to where everyone stands. Everyone has been developing their cars. We'll get a better idea as to where everyone is after testing, but we won't really know anything until we actually start racing in Melbourne."

Steiner has downplayed expectations about Haas' debut season before and says a realistic expectation for 2016 will be behind Toro Rosso, even though it will line up this season with Ferrari engines one year older.

"We hope to line up somewhere in the lower midfield. It is always very difficult to predict how other teams will be doing before testing, but I think with Toro Rosso being a well-established team they should be in front of us - even with a one-year old engine."

MIKA: I am more than positive, Ferrari have benefited from the Haas use of their wind tunnel.... I sure hope Haas F1 is competitive. At least to be no less than a midfield team in their first season would be great to mix things up.

[MIKA27]

“IT’S A MIND GAME” – HAKKINEN AND VETTEL OFFER F1 ADVICE TO DAVOS BUSINESS LEADERS

Double Formula 1 world champion Mika Hakkinen reckons business leaders attending the World Economic Forum in Davos can learn from his approach to the sport.

Hakkinen appeared on a panel with Sebastian Vettel, Susie Wolff and Dr Aki Hintsa, F1 doctor to the stars. Hakkinen, who won back-to-back F1 titles in 1998 and 1998 with McLaren, told the BBC that after spending a number of years without success when he first arrived in the sport, he used all his experience to focus on the finer details and prioritise quality over quantity.

The Finnish driver, who is in Davos with Hintsa Performance, a company founded by Hintsa that helps professionals in all walks of life achieve their peak performance, believes this approach could benefit business leaders. Vettel is a good example of how a driver can maximise his potential by following Hintsa’s programme. He has also worked closely with Lewis Hamilton and many other top F1 drivers.

Hakkinen said: “I was in Formula 1 for ten years, winning a world championship twice. Yes I had some difficult years too, but all the years I was in Formula 1 I was learning more and more.

“One thing was very important – quality is important, not the quantity. So focus on details because those things make a difference.

“It is a mind game, it is a physical game and I believe that is exactly the same in business.

“It is a mind game; you need physical condition, so concentrate on quality, not quantity.”

Many of the most successful F1 drivers, including seven-times world champion and Hakkinen’s rival, Michael Schumacher, have been praised for their work ethic and attention to detail.

But Schumacher’s former Ferrari boss, and current FIA president, Jean Todt, explained at the recent Watkins lecture that although he believed that the German was a great leader, his methods were not unusual among F1 drivers.

He said: “Michael was a great leader, a great motivator, a great personality, but he was coming to the factory very rarely.

“Of course he knew most of the people from the team, the test and racing team, but otherwise he was not visiting the workshop every week.

“It is not exceptional to honour people who you work with, so of course every year we were celebrating at the end of the year.

Honestly I don’t think it was something very special.

“I’m sure Hamilton, when he celebrated at Christmas, I’m sure he would do something for his team. I would not give special credit to [schumacher].”

[MIKA27]

Mercedes F1 team eyes second-shift system for 21 grand prix year

Mercedes is contemplating a second-shift system for its travelling Formula 1 staff ahead of a record-breaking 21-race calendar in 2016.

Its motorsport boss Toto Wolff has expressed concerns at the fatigue likely to be endured by his personnel as F1 stretches the limits of endurance.

Wolff can understand F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone's desire to increase the number of grands prix per year, but he also feels those who put in the hours, such as the engineers and mechanics, need to be taken into consideration.

"There are pros and cons with more races," Wolff told Autosport.

"From the perspective of the commercial rights holder I understand more races brings more income, provides more coverage, bigger audiences, so that's a plus.

"In terms of making the spectacle exclusive, that's maybe a minus.

"From the team's perspective we have to take it like it is because Bernie draws up the calendar, and the income of the teams has been growing over past years, and this is certainly the most important thing.

"We just need to be careful with the organisation because with 19 races we've seen the mental and physical limits of the team.

"So we are looking at various concepts as to how we can survive for 21 races because I'm not sure we can cope with 21 in the current [team] structure.

"So we're looking at how we can optimise on travelling, on the jetlag, on rest, maybe having a second shift for the guys who work very hard.

"All that is being taken into consideration."

Wolff recognises a second-shift system would not work for every member of the team as some need to attend every race.

"There are many people you can't really exchange because they are the best ones," he added.

"There is a particularly hard time towards the end of the year with all those long-haul races, and this becomes very hard.

"I just want to protect the team, protect the individuals, and we need to see what we can do in order to make it most effective, but also workable."

[MIKA27]

Red Bull's Daniil Kvyat understands F1 more after tough 2015 season

Daniil Kvyat feels he has "a much better understanding" of every aspect of Formula 1, after a tough 2015 in which he struggled for consistency.

Following a solid debut F1 season with Toro Rosso in 2014, Kvyat moved over to 'sister' team Red Bull in '15.

Ultimately it proved to be a tough campaign as Red Bull and power-unit supplier Renault fell out, while Kvyat also encountered his own issues at times.

"At the end of my rookie season there were no mistakes at all," said Kvyat, speaking to Autosport.

"But sometimes they happen. Every driver makes mistakes and obviously I had a crash in Japan and at Austin, but they were just circumstantial.

"There's nothing I would put it down to. It's just a quick flash in the pan and you're in the wall.

"You just move on. You can't think about it too much.

"About Austin, I have more positive memories about the first half of the race than the second, so obviously I'll keep those positive emotions more than the negative emotions.

"Other than those two races, I wouldn't say there was too much I did wrong.

"It was an up-and-down season, and when you find yourself in the middle group it's hard to be consistent."

In joining Red Bull, Kvyat expected to be pushing for podiums and wins, after it achieved three victories and nine podiums in 2014, despite a wretched first pre-season with power units.

Kvyat concedes he faced a period of adjustment when it became clear the year would be a lot more difficult than he first expected.

"I had to put any kind of expectations behind me, go through some times when I had to refocus. Mental adjustments are always tricky," he added.

"I just had to forget about the final positions and just focus on driving. That was it. It proved to be a good, efficient way.

"From Monaco there were many more positive races and a much more positive understanding with the car.

"Still, I wouldn't say that it was perfect, but at least I could say I had a much better understanding of everything."

[ArtVandalay]

Mika Hakkinen is my idol - Hence my name on this very forum I wish he returned after his hiatus, I always had hoped.

Rubens Barrichello deserved at least one WDC IMO, he's still racing and I still follow him closely.

By the way, really appreciate your posts.

Glad to hear it. I was hesitant to post since I was new and wasn't sure this was a conversation thread since no one else seemed to be responding. You might just motivate me to follow F1 again.

[MIKA27]

Glad to hear it. I was hesitant to post since I was new and wasn't sure this was a conversation thread since no one else seemed to be responding. You might just motivate me to follow F1 again.

Yeah, I have people who read the thread and occasionally post, I often get alot of PM's more than people posting.

But feel free to post whenever you feel.

[MIKA27]

VETERANS LAMENT THE STATE OF MODERN FORMULA 1

Two former Formula 1 drivers, and veterans of the sport at the highest level, have lamented the current state of the sport.

1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve and F1 veteran Gerhard Berger think changes at the very heart of formula one are now necessary.

“F1 tries to be everything,” Villeneuve, now a Formula E driver, told CNN. “And that’s wrong. It tries to be an endurance car – it’s some form of hybrid – and hybrid technology weighs around 100 kilos and that’s four seconds a lap of weight.

“It’s not F1, it’s not extreme, it doesn’t make sense,” the French Canadian declared. F1 has to be out there, extreme, unattainable, stupid, crazy — that’s what it’s always been. It’s a laboratory where the sky’s the limit.

“There are a lot of things that are making F1 a lot less appealing to the public. A bunch of things like DRS,” said Villeneuve, now 44. He concludes that F1 needs to “go back to its roots”, and Berger agrees.

“Today,” said the former McLaren and Ferrari driver, “the viewer is confronted with a bunch of rules and words that he does not understand.

“Every Sunday there is something new,” Berger told Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport. “DRS, KERS, token, ultra-soft tyres … no one in the world knows what a ‘token’ is. But formula one talks about it every day.”

“People are at work all week and for two hours they want to be entertained with a grand prix. So if Bernie (Ecclestone) and Jean (Todt) are not able to keep this nonsense from the spectators, they must not be surprised when no one is interested anymore,” Berger charged.

The 56-year-old said that, to solve the problem, F1 needs someone to stand up and take clear control of the sport, “In reality I sometimes fall asleep in front of the television now. Because after one lap you know who will win the race.

“What it needs is a neutral body who represents the fans and the sport, and takes the final decisions. In these democratic votes by the teams, there are way too many bad compromises,” he insisted.

“If Bernie and Jean have sold their power, they need someone capable and financially independent, with the sport in his blood and the necessary power to direct from above.

“Then everyone can decide if they want to be in or not. That was the old system,” said Berger, “and it worked. That’s what we have to go back to.”

[MIKA27]

ARGENTINE GOVERNMENT KEEN ON F1 RACE RETURN

An Argentinean minister has confirmed the government’s desire to see Formula 1 return to the South American country.

F1 has not raced at the then-ageing venue in Buenos Aires since 1998, but Bernie Ecclestone said late last season: “We’re talking to them and it can happen.”

At around the same time, Argentina elected a new president, Mauricio Macri.

Macri, in turn, appointed Gustavo Santos as the new tourism minister, declaring: “Now we have to get the country moving”.

At an event on Thursday, minister Santos declared that Argentina wants to secure several major events, including the World Cup and a grand prix.

He said the aim is to “strengthen our positioning and brand”.

“These are challenges that are costly and complicated,” Santos told the Spanish news agency EFE, “but it is our decision to seek them and other major events.”

[MIKA27]

Jenson Button says past helps him deal with McLaren F1 struggles

Jenson Button believes the struggles he has endured in Formula 1 in the past are providing him with the strength to cope with McLaren's problems at present.

All at McLaren-Honda suffered through a miserable 2015 following the Japanese manufacturer's return to F1 as a power-unit supplier.

A litany of reliability issues, combined with a lack of power, resulted in McLaren finishing a wretched ninth in the constructors' championship, one of the lowest positions in the team's history.

The 2009 world champion, however, is no stranger to strife as his 2001 season with Benetton (pictured below) testifies when he scored just two points, along with the '07-'08 campaigns with Honda when he managed six and three points respectively.

Button said: "People come into Formula 1 at different points in their career and with teams that are competitive or uncompetitive. For me it was less competitive.

"When you first win a race, for me it means a lot more because you've worked so hard to get there, and you've gone through the pain and the struggle.

"It's very special when you win. I've never seen so many grown men cry as when I first won in 2006 [in Hungary with Honda] - the whole team.

"So going through struggles, it's tough. None of us like it, but it's necessary sometimes to come out the other side, learn from it, about who you really are as a driver, but also as a human being.

"It's made a huge difference in my career. It's made me a much stronger person."

Button recognises the years with Honda from 2003-08, initially as an engine supplier to BAR before becoming a works team in their own right, were also difficult for the Japanese company.

But again the 35-year-old feels Honda will also emerge stronger from a trying year.

"It makes us all realise it's not an easy sport to be involved with," added Button.

"It's so competitive. You're on the radar the whole time. You can't get away from the sport.

"If you have an issue everyone knows about it and wants to talk about it, and wants to put you down. It's really tough.

"For a culture like the Japanese culture, it's very difficult for them. Sometimes it can be a big dishonour.

"It was a very difficult season, but they're so positive, working flat out, and they will make big changes next year, as we will as a team, with the car mechanically and aerodynamically.

"We need to improve everywhere, and that's exactly what we'll do."

[MIKA27]

STALLONE: SENNA WANTED ME TO DO HIS LIFE STORY AND NOW I SOLD HIS HELMET

Sylvester Stallone revealed that hew was in talks with Ayrton Senna to make a movie about the Formula 1 legend’s life, but the Brazilian’s mortal accident at Imola in 1994 put the plan to rest forever.

In a video released by Heritage Auctions who are auctioning on behalf of the Hollywood star the helmet gifted by Senna, Stallone reminisces while showing off the iconic yellow helmet, “Ayrton Senna was one of the great drivers of all time and he wanted me to do his life story.”

“We were speaking many years ago on the phone and he goes to me: I think it would be really good… I liked your films. I thought: thank you very much. I started to study up on him and we spoke a lot by phone.”

“He said: Let me show you the [helmet] colours, the yellow colours, they’re very much like Rocky colours. So he sent it to me and of course I’d never seen a helmet like this.”

“And then unfortunately he died in this horrible crash, and after that I decided I couldn’t do the film, it was just too hard, but this [the helmet] is what he sent me,” concluded ‘Rocky Balboa’ who had no qualms parting with the one of F1’s most coveted relics for a mere $40,000.

Heritage Auctions explain on their website: “This was the helmet design that Ayrton Senna wore in 1994 when he switched to the Williams F1 team from McLaren and this helmet in particular was one of the actual ones Senna wore during testing of the car in 1994.”

“After two races in that same year, Senna was killed in San Marino, Italy when his car hit the wall on the first turn during the race. Senna was one of the most successful racing drivers in Formula 1 and only a few of the helmets he wore during this year were made.”

“It is believed that his family destroyed the one he was wearing during his death. Gifted by Senna to Stallone. Realized $43,750.”

According to helmet painter Sid Mosca, the blue and green stripes symbolised movement and aggression, while the yellow embodies youth. The three colors were also identifiable with the Brazilian flag.

Senna himself said he originally picked yellow in his karting days so that a driver ahead knew who was behind him, get nervous and make a mistake.

[MIKA27]

WASTEGATE EXHAUST TO CRANK UP THE F1 SOUND

Formula 1 appears to have succeeded in turning up the volume for 2016, which should pacify race fans, promoters and other stakeholders disappointed with the milder tones of the new ‘power unit’ era, the regulations have been tweaked for the new season.

“The wastegate was causing a sort of silencing of the main exhaust pipe,” explained technical chief Paddy Lowe in a Mercedes video.

Now, the wastegate will have its own exhaust pipe in order to create more noise and, according to Lowe, “It will work”.

His counterpart at Williams, Pat Symonds, agrees, saying recently that the volume could be 25 per cent louder in 2016.

“We will see how much louder they will be,” said Lowe, “but some measurements have been made in the labs and we have seen a significant increase.”