Alright when was that again.....?

[Mike Kadlcak]

This one is easy for me.
The technology involved in the sport!
Also... if you’ve stood at the usual corners in the last year or two (silverstone turn 1, copse, Becketts, Barcelona turns 7&8 etc...) you’ll know...

technology? what kind of nonsense is that? Would you still like it if they in future advance F1 to hovercars with rocket engines instead of tires? Cause the tech would probably be freakin insane.

Imho Motor-racing should be about the drivers and their skills and the passing and racing on the track. Thats what makes the show complete. I couldnt care less what the tech is behind these cars. I am not an engineer.
EDIT: the sound is important... dont like any tractor diesel sound!

and if they want to compare F1 drivers in the firstplace.. they should do a fun/race once in a while... where everyone is in the same car and the same setup... ala Forumla-3 in the years of Jochen Rindt and co. ... He was a master talent and destroyed every F1 driver in the F3 cars.

 

[iperdrive3]

I still watch f1 races but i don't find them entertaining. I was born in 1992 so i watched every year of Schumi in Ferrari, i remember Hakkinen and other great drivers. We have great drivers too in this period but i don't like all the rules and the technicism like DRS etc. For example i prefer the old qualifying format, just one lap for each driver.

 

[Richard Dastardly]

technology? what kind of nonsense is that? Would you still like it if they in future advance F1 to hovercars with rocket engines instead of tires? Cause the tech would probably be freakin insane.

Yes. That was F1's mandate - just because the tech has advanced beyond what's obvious to see doesn't matter. If you want to watch a top end spec series, there's Indycar. BoP destroys engineering, there's literally no point trying to improve - if you want a prime example you need look no further than the AMG GT3, 5 years winning and it's evolution version last year changed nothing about performance, only usability - so at the point you try making it just about drivers you've created just another spec series and there's many series to pay attention to these days.

 

[M-Bimmer]

Started watching in 90’ and feel fortunate to have watched some of true heroes, ballers & legends. Can’t deny that in recent years when Pirelli introduced the different tyre compounds then i was all in the strategy game and that’s the most interesting part for me (so FP2 is a must see to watch the race simulation) along with overtakes when any.

 

[Squared Circle]

...

Why? As mentioned above, how does watching one car fly past another which has no hope of defending against it make the "racing" any more fun or exciting? It's lame.

...

By saying DRS is needed for overtaking I meant this in the context of current regulation. The aerodynamics of a F1 car (and the layouts of modern F1 tracks) simply don't present a lot of options if you want overtaking outside the pit lane.
I guess we are on the same page as I also think that having to incorporate things like DRS shows the whole fiasco the "sport" is in.

Overtaking should be part of racing. Without it, it doesn't sell. Given the costs, it has to sell. So each series needs to make business decisions on this topic. Which of those decisions are fine, which are not? To me BOP is better to make for close racing. The starting grid rules of SBK (2nd race) are something I like.

 

[Kindly]

I dislike modern F1 in comparison to late 1990s F1.

I find it interesting now because I dreamt of being a racing driver as a kid and had a quad and I still consider it the pinnacle of racing even if halos and drs zones and everything makes it ****.

I actually think F1 may have peaked a few times. For pure racing, Senna. For pure cars with minimal electronics, late 90s. For engines, early 2000s, even though groove tires ruined it. And then for combination of hybrids and DRS and KRS, early 2010s.

For the record, DRS is fine imo, but only DRS zones and one car being able to use it is the problem.

 

[Damage Inc]

Watched F1 since Mansell in the mid 80's, Loved the Mansell, Senna/Prost fights. Got into GP500s and WSB when Sky came out and ever since then F1 has paled compared to the 2 wheel racing, but it did enough to keep me watching.

But as the "aero" got more and more elaborate and the close racing more and more difficult my interest waned, culminating in gimmicky stuff like Kers and DRS to just overtake, the butchering of classic tracks and the Tilke crap fest of new ones...culminating in the Mercs dominance, which was the cherry on the turd cake.

voted no.

 

[michelforest]

The biggest mistake F1 ever made was allowing teams to have a say in anything whatsoever.

Exactly! Say what you want about NASCAR, but at least they got that part right. There’s one governing body in place and they set the rules. You don’t like it? Bye-bye, don’t let the door hit you on the way out. That way, no team thinks it is bigger than the sport itself, unlike Ferrari or Red Bull who always threaten to leave F1 (and never do).

 

[SamHallRacing]

I've been watching since 1978. People who complain that F1 sucks now because Mercedes and Hamilton always win probably don't remember how bad it was between 2001 and 2004 when Ferrari and Schumacher always won. Remember Austria 2002, when Barrichello was told by his team to give up a certain win to Schumacher in the very last lap?

Anyway, there are things in modern F1 that I don't like, like DRS or the absurdly complex "power units" that they're using now. But there has always been something to bitch about in F1. Personally, I hated refueling when drivers qualified with different fuel levels and "passing" was done by using a different strategy in the pits. And I was glad to see slick tires back in 2009.

There are boring races and exciting races, it all depends. But in 42 years, I can tell you that there were boring races and exciting races in every era.

As far as I'm concerned, F1 still has the best drivers and the most interesting cars. It's the only series where every team design its own car (insert you own Racing Point joke here). And the level of competition is still incredibly high. Doesn't mean other racing series are not good, of course. One can like chocolate ice cream and butterscotch ice cream too!

Well said, you took the words out of my mouth. I've watched F1 on and off since the 70s.
Ayrton and Mario Andretti are my 2 favorite drivers of all time.
I remember Senna staying out on slicks in the rain at Brazil. I was also watching the day Ayrton died and was devastated. However, I still watched the next race at Monaco.
Yes, it is not as competitive as it was, but for me I'll take auto racing in any form over any other form of sports any day of the week. A "boring" F1 race still beats an exciting team sport for me.

Oh, and my current favorite team is Haas, because I'm glad to see an American owner back in the sport. I hope they survive.

 

[michelforest]

I still watch it but not as interested as I was in the past when we had nice screaming engines. Listening to Crofty is torture. I’m in the USA and would love to hear Varsha, Matchett and Hobbs again

Yes, I’m in Canada and I used to watch F1 on the old Speed channel. These three were good and very entertaining. Now, I watch FP2 on TSN and we also get the Sky broadcast. Like you, I find Crofty tiresome with his feeble attempts at humor. Damon Hill however is always a pleasure to listen to, when he’s there. I’m French Canadian, so at least I can watch qualifying and the race on our local RDS channel. They do a pretty good job even if they are not at the track.

 

[michelforest]

Ayrton and Mario Andretti are my 2 favorite drivers of all time.
I remember Senna staying out on slicks in the rain at Brazil. I was also watching the day Ayrton died and was devastated. However, I still watched the next race at Monaco.
Yes, it is not as competitive as it was, but for me I'll take auto racing in any form over any other form of sports any day of the week. A "boring" F1 race still beats an exciting team sport for me.

Oh, and my current favorite team is Haas, because I'm glad to see an American owner back in the sport. I hope they survive.

Andretti is an absolute legend. In my opinion, he could be the most « complete » driver of all time. This guy won in every category he tried, and he tried a lot of them. I remember his last seasons in Indycar when he was often faster than drivers young enough to be his sons.

Like you, I am a Haas fan, but mainly because of Gunther Steiner’s twitter feed! They really need better drivers, in my opinion. They won’t get far with Grosjean and Magnussen.

 

[beef]

People who say that F1 Cars are easy to drive and the drivers dont need skill, did you guys ever drove one by yourselve?

I bet its a lot easier than an old f1 car.

 

[SamHallRacing]

Andretti is an absolute legend. In my opinion, he could be the most « complete » drivheer of all time. This guy won in every category he tried, and he tried a lot of themI remember his last seasons in Indycar when he was often faster than drivers young enough to be his sons.

Like you, I am a Haas fan, but mainly because of Gunther Steiner’s twitter feed! They really need better drivers, in my opinion. They won’t get far with Grosjean and Magnussen.

Agreed, they need better drivers. And I of course completely agree with you about Mario. He won Daytona. He won the World Championship. He won the Indy 500, every series he ever raced in. Just a superb driver. Too bad his luck never rubbed off on Michael!

 

[Filip Carlén]

I don't ****ing know, really. It can be as dull as watching paint dry, and there are so many series with better racing, bit for some reason F1 is special. Maybe it is the positions as the last highest step on the racing career ladder. But I don't know, I just HAVE to watch it.

 

[5-Card-Major]

I really hope Mercedes doesn't dominate again this week... This season could get boring at the top FAST...

 

[Dan ONeill]

Ok I’ll bite Mike, but only because you think my opinion is nonsense...

technology? what kind of nonsense is that? Would you still like it if they in future advance F1 to hovercars with rocket engines instead of tires? Cause the tech would probably be freakin insane.

Imho Motor-racing should be about the drivers and their skills and the passing and racing on the track. Thats what makes the show complete. I couldnt care less what the tech is behind these cars. I am not an engineer.
EDIT: the sound is important... dont like any tractor diesel sound!

and if they want to compare F1 drivers in the firstplace.. they should do a fun/race once in a while... where everyone is in the same car and the same setup... ala Forumla-3 in the years of Jochen Rindt and co. ... He was a master talent and destroyed every F1 driver in the F3 cars.

1. Yes I’d f*****g love that! Can you imagine the scope of the racing and the skill of the “pilots”?
2. Partially agree but I am an engineer so to me that is what excites me as WELL as the racing.
Also, have you actually been to an F1 circuit and listened to the cars close up? They are a lot louder than you think but I would have to say that the V8 was better.
3. Not really relevant to F1 is it? F1 is the pinnacle of motorsport not because the drivers are the best but because the cars are the best.

 

[FinFan]

In those days where also dominating teams making many races a boring ride.

That depends on ones point of view.

I watched, with very few exception of races not being broadcasted, every GP from 1982 to about the early 2000s. I actually stayed home to watch the oversea races instead of going out on weekends. That's what my level of interest was. Sure there were teams dominating just like there are today but the boredom set in more towards the 2000s.
And in any case: what's wrong with a team producing a dominant car? That does only mean they did a better job then others. No one forces a runner who's one second faster then everyone else to wear led weight on his body.
There have always been rich and poor teams and all the rules they implemented over the years haven't changed that. And even a cap on the budget won't make a championship contender out of a bottom four team. I understand that progress and change is needed to adapt to changing times. But it is a matter of opinon if the changes where for the better.

 

[NDG]

I'm watching the kinds of Hamilton and Verstappen... I like it when they fail. I like watching the underdogs succeed. Not Grosejan, Magnussen underdogs though. Those are complete failures. I'd like to see Ricciardo and Sainz win a championship one day. All else are just meh IMO.

 

[AndrewBo]

Press Conference today:

Quote ( via Google-Translate ) :


I want to make the right decision for myself, that's not yet the case. I had stressed that I would like to continue if the conditions were right. If the conditions are not right, then I am not the one who wants to be there just so that he can be there or maybe take a little money .

End Quote

 

[markg88]

Andretti is an absolute legend.

I second that.