04/19/24
December 01, 2008
Bernie Ecclestone loses mind.: Ecclestone says Formula One will use a medals system next year to decide the title. "When asked if it was fair that someone who wins six races but doesn't finish any others beats someone who had finished every race in second place, Ecclestone replied: "He'll have to try harder next year."" Eddie Jordan remains unconvinced.
There are so many flaws in Ecclestone's proposed system that it's hard to know where to start really. For the record, had this medal system been in use in 2008, Felipe Massa would have been champion. Begin Ferrari conspiracy theories in 5... 4... 3...
posted by Drood to auto racing at 11:31 AM - 7 comments
It's tinkering for tinkering sake. Ecclestone seems to be under the impression that a driver won't overtake for an extra two points. Completely ignoring the fact that MOST drivers, unless it's near the end of the season and they have a big lead, will push right up until the last 10 laps or so.
F1 DOES need more overtaking, but has to be careful. An overtake needs to be something exciting. Too much of it, and you've got NASCAR where watching all but the last 10 laps of a race is pointless.
I can't remember if it was this year or last year, but at the Spanish Grand Prix, there was ONE overtaking move. And I don't mean for the lead, I mean throughout the field in the entire race.
F1 has new rules next year that will supposedly increase overtaking.
Being the cynical F1 fan I am, I think Bernie has either gone senile, or is trying to distract us from some other issue, since clearly this medal idea is nonsense. If they want to make a win more valuable, then re-distribute the points, and also give a point for fastest lap and pole position.
I don't think this medal idea will fly. They can't run it concurrently with the points system. (Otherwise you'd have drivers with more points losing the championship.) And the points determine how the money gets divided up come seasons end, and the midfield teams are fighting over those lower places.
The medal system just can't work. End of story.
posted by Drood at 03:28 PM on December 02, 2008
Bernie shows his pro-Ferrari bias in every decision he makes. The medal idea is nuts.
I do think there should be a bigger points gap between first and second place, and that points should be awarded in qualifying as well. Award points for the top five in Q3. Some of the qualifying sessions in F1 are more entertaining than the actual race, last season's finale being the obvious exception. NASCAR isn't the only series where taping a race comes in handy...
posted by eccsport78 at 09:02 PM on December 02, 2008
I can honestly say that 2008 was the first season where I didn't at least skip forward in a race in probably five years.
There's a great article about this idiotic medal system on Autosport this past week, but sadly I can't link as it's paid subscription only. Details the many, many flaws in this plan.
I don't think it's ever going to happen. This is like the idiot saying "Lewis Hamilton will not be driving for McLaren next year" in 2006. (Which he did say.) The man wields a lot less power these days than he thinks he does. If he wielded as much power as he did, the Indy tyre debacle would have never happened.
I don't buy the Ferrari conspiracy theories. Never attribute to malice what can be adequately explained by stupidity. Either the man has lost it entirely, or he's full in charge of his faculties, and knows damn well that this medal thing is never going to fly, and he's said it to put the fear of god up the teams to start making the on-track action more interesting.
As for NASCAR... Watched one season. That was enough for a life time. Just so much wrong with that sport that I really don't have the time or inclination to get into. Suffice to say I'm still gutted that Montoya is in it. I hold out hope one day to see him race at Le Mans. (And win hopefully. Do what Villeneuve hasn't yet, get the trilogy. Indy, Monaco, Le Mans.)
posted by Drood at 04:39 AM on December 03, 2008
Who really cares? F1 is the most BORING form of racing on the face of the earth.
posted by DumontDude at 09:55 AM on December 03, 2008
DumontDude, you obviously do not understand the logistics and finesse of operating a F-1 race car. This isn't the crash and bash of NASCAR.
posted by steelergirl at 11:56 AM on December 03, 2008
Well thanks for stopping by with your well educated and well argued observation Dumont.
Steelergirl: I think I love you.:)
I really do believe that people who call F1 boring simply don't understand it. While yes, the racing can be dull, I really enjoyed most races this year, and even ones where very little happened at the front it was still tense and exciting. Plus there's all the history, the background, the technical aspect, the politics, the personalities.
What counts as fair racing in NASCAR would get you a penalty in F1, and rightly so. (Tapping the guy in front out of the way isn't "racing". It's called "cheating" in every other series.)
posted by Drood at 04:28 PM on December 03, 2008
I appreciate that the results would have changed last year with this plan applied retroactively, but if the new proposed rules had been the rules at the beginning of the season, would Hamilton et al have raced differently? I don't follow F1, so I'm not sure whether there is a problem with the current rules or if this is just tinkering for tinkering's sake. Is more overtaking a good thing? Or is harping on the lack of overtaking similar to the complaint that soccer/football is boring because there are not enough goals?