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"We are all simply waiting to hear if we have it or not. It's up to Bernie [Ecclestone]."
An unnamed "official" at Speedvision, trying to explain why there is no agreement with Ecclestone for American TV rights.
Steve Dean (SD): Why do these things always come down to the last second? Three days separates us from the Australian Grand Prix, and we don't know if we will be able to watch. Everyone is getting paid, except, per usual, the audience. Here in The Backyard, the term "Ugly American" is set to become reality.
"We have deep respect for our competitor...This has driven us to make significant improvements in performance.....Our evolution
tires are already as much as three seconds a lap faster than the equivalent 2000 equipment."
Yoshihiko Ichikawa, 1-28-01, Bridgestone Technical Manager, at that time, speaking of the upcoming tire war with Michelin
SD: Goodbye new, aerodynamic restrictions, hello Melbourne.
"Over the past six months the FIA has changed its rules and commercial arrangements and will now take further measures to carry out its role as regulator of international motor sport without any commercial involvement...This will eliminate all possibility of future conflicts of interest."
Max Mosley, on the proposed agreement between the European Union and FIA, i.e., Bernie Ecclestone.
SD: For argument's sake, let's accept this to be true. Then ask, who is responsible for the money in Formula One? FIA, or Bernie? Of course, we know the answer to that. So what difference does it make if the FIA is separated from the commercial aspects of F1? The FIA was, and is in control of the F1 financial pot so long as Bernie is a member. So now, Bernie will split the broadcast and commercial ties from the FIA, as if the FIA actually controlled those anyway. This has always been Bernie's game. An agreement with The European Union may change the names, and where the lines are drawn, but those lines still point straight to Bernie Ecclestone's wallet.
"Of all the things that have ever impressed me, I think that did it more than anything else, running at 210 (MPH) in '87. The thing about running those speeds on this track (Daytona) back then, when you left pit road you didn't know if you were coming back. Now, you've got an idea you're coming back. It's just how long is it going to take you to get around before you get back…? Now, you sit out there and hold the cars wide open and it skips across the race track. It's uncomfortable, but you just hang on. Back then, you had to really drive the car."
Bill Elliot, NASCAR driver
Autosport
SD: Ever since NASCAR mandated restrictor plates at the super-speedways, drivers and teams have been painfully out-spoken regarding the dangers and lack of input a driver has controlling their cars. Restrictor plate is an apt description for the horsepower-robbing device. When stock cars run at the small and intermediate tracks, there are no restrictions. There are the two huge holes in the top of the intake manifold, which air and fuel is sucked into, via the carburetor. To keep horsepower, and top speeds limited for the super-speedways, NASCAR requires all cars to add a spacer between the carburetor and the intake manifold. This spacer has four small holes that cover the normally, wide-open intake chambers. Hence, the smaller the holes, the less air and fuel makes its way to the combustion chambers, drastically reducing power. The F1 equivalent would be a golf-ball, size airbox opening behind the driver's head.
From NASCAR's view, it has been a success. Speeds are kept below the magical 200 MPH mark. So, the thinking goes, the lower the speed, the safer everyone will be. However, like F1, the quest for safety often has ugly side-effects. As Elliot says, now the drivers just keep their foot to the floor, and hope that they can use aerodynamics to get ahead. Restrictor plate racing has the unfortunate tendency to bunch all of the cars together, which creates closer racing, but less room for drivers to maneuver should there be an accident. Which means an accident at a super-speedway often eliminates a large number of cars. In reality, accidents at 180 MPH aren't any less deadly than those at 200 MPH; more to the point, the chances are higher that ten cars will be involved, rather than two or three. Restrictor plates in NASCAR are no different than the use of chicanes in F1, both in intention and in practicality. In all racing, it seems, the quest for safety can often be inadvertent; and worst of all, deadly.
Sidebar: The above was written the Monday before the Daytona 500 on 2-19-01. This is one time when we wish we were wrong. Unfortunately, we were spot on. Instead of ten cars being involved, it turned out to be twenty-one. As luck would have it, no driver was injured in the mass pile-up. Then, there was the last lap tragedy involving Dale Earnhardt. We would be irresponsible if we claimed restrictor plates caused Earnhardt's accident. The fact remains, though, NASCAR, in safety matters, is trimming fingernails with a machete.
"I find it odd that Niki Lauda, who will be involved with my Jaguar Racing team this season, should suggest I occasionally need a kick up the backside to keep motivated....I hope Niki assesses any problems we may have in the team more accurately than he has assessed my motivation........No one is more self-critical and I certainly don't need anyone - not even a three-time world champion - telling me otherwise......We have a test driver to do that sort of thing and I am no longer at the stage of my career where I have to do the donkey work."
Eddie Irvine, The Sun, 2-13-01
SD: Ah, Edward, we were just talking about you last week, and this week, you continue to prove our point. Sure, you're full of shit, but you make the Backyard so interesting....One gets the feeling if Moses climbed down from the mountaintop and offered Eddie a pointer or two, Eddie would sock the bearded man in the chin. Hee-Haw!!!!
"I see no disgrace in being lapped.....Many cars are lapped many times in a race. If everyone had the budget of the best teams, racing would be a lot closer."
Paul Stoddart, Minardi's new boss, 2-13-01
SD: We are always reading what a refreshing environment the Minardi camp provides the F1 establishment. Great coffee, everyone says. Too bad Formula One cars don't run on java, because that's about the only way the Minardi is going to stay on the lead lap. "This year, in the Starbucks World Championship, we really think the Minardi team has the beans to reach the top.........
"I'm going to London because Jaguar has not won anything, yet, and that's why I decided to accept the challenge. To be honest, the offer came at just the right time. I'm going to put Jaguar at the top of Formula One.'
Niki Lauda, New CEO of Ford's Premier Performance Division
SD: We don't know what to make of Niki Lauda heading up Jaguar. Forgetting Eddie Irvine's comments, Lauda is not one to be taken lightly. That said, it's one thing to say you're going put Jaguar and Ford on top, it's quite another to make it happen. The prevailing thought in The Backyard says Ford has been at it since they abandoned the legendary DFV-V8; since then, it's been all bluster, and little buster. Can Lauda, Rahal, and the gang reverse the wheels? This we know: dollar bills and pound notes are only building blocks, rather than keys to the championship. Does Ford?
"Max likes to argue more than I do.....These reports are anything but true. Max has been trying to do some extortion. Maybe he has some problems with the tax authorities in France. He wants the money paid immediately, but he has no right to do that."
Bernie Ecclestone
"There is a theory, widely held in Formula One, that when Bernie Ecclestone itches, Max Mosley scratches.......What seems entirely unreasonable is that Ecclestone and Mosley would have a dispute over the terms of a contract, and that even if such a dispute arose, the idea that the two men would be trading near insults in public about stretches credulity well past the braking point."
Forrest Bond
Racefax Online
SD: I know few limits when it comes to searching for racing journalism. Magazines, books, and of course, The Internet. I'm not much interested in reading the wire stories about racing. I want something with a sharp, human eye. Through all my searches, I came across Forrest Bond, again. I remembered Bond from On-Track magazine. He wrote a column at the back page of OT. Excellent work. Inside stuff. In other words, he wrote articles that weren't available anywhere else, certainly not in the newspapers.
As I scanned through Atlas-F1 one night, I noticed a link to Racefax. I clicked it. Up popped Forrest Bond's name. I was thrilled. I could finally get the detailed racing news and analysis that gets me one step closer to the pulse of racing. Bond, and the rest of the Racefax crew always cut straight to the chase.
Bond, and Racefax isn't for everyone, however. For one, Racefax doesn't come cheap. At $90 dollars a year, Racefax will be too much for the casual fan, but then, that's not really the audience that is drawn to Racefax, anyway. Other friends of mine, say Bond is long-winded, and too critical, particulary of CART.
Maybe it's just me, or maybe it's my desire to be able to dissect an issue, like Bond does, but I love seeing the guilty parties answering the questions when the truth is laid out. Long-winded? Perhaps, but to Bond's credit, there never seems to be a wasted word. Ask CART; it was Forrest Bond who gave CART officials a faxed, translated letter from the mayor of Rio,
canceling this year's Rio 200.
"Nigel Mansell constantly complained that Alain Prost had more horsepower when they were team-mates at Ferrari. Nigel was partly right, Alain did have more effective horsepower. In one car was a scrawny little guy and in the other was a big fat pudding. In practical terms, Prost would always have a horsepower advantage."
"Watkins Glen was a pretty special circuit, but unfortunately it was the crowd that lost it the Grand Prix or, to be more precise, an element of the crowd. They used to camp in an area which became known as 'The Bog' where they'd get drunk, shag and crap in public and set cars on fire. One thing which is guaranteed to rack my tits is if someone torches my car."
Mike Lawrence
Planet-F1.com
SD: Do yourself a favor. Every week check out Lawrence's column on Planet-F1. He has been around a long time, has written many racing books, and knows many of today's F1 insiders. It shows. There are other F1 journalists that write as well about racing's history as Lawrence, but for my money, no one can keep pace with Lawrence's caustic wit. Mike, may your peeper never lose it's point.
"Usually, at the last minute ticket sales of F1 will get a boost."
Azmi Murad, General Manager of the Sepang International Circuit, following reports that the Malaysian Grand Prix, to be held in less than three weeks time, has sold just over 30,000 of the possible 90,000 tickets.
F1-Live.com
SD: Azmi, that would be one hell of a boost. He also said they were hopeful of 200,000 fans for the entire weekend. I'm hopeful that I'll wake up tomorrow in a new house, a new car, and a larger balance in my checkbook. That isn't going to happen either. Good luck,
Azmi.
The author can be contacted at contacts@autoracing1.com
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