Opinion | How To Fix Formula One?

[Terry Rock]

Improved racing could come from increasing the fuel amount and flow rate.
I get it!..F1 want to appear to appeal to a sense of conservation and responsible behavior.
That said...when your core business is motor racing, you have to put the racing first.
They can conserve by scheduling races to minimize transport related fuel use.
It will never, ever be a 'green' sport.
The sheer nature of how equipment is moved and utilized dictates that it won't.
Second...Remove DRS and ERS and reduce diffuser size.
Remove all side-pod strakes.
Bring back Thursday practice and offer a very small entry cost on that day.
Not all people have weekends off work, so spreading out the amount of access is a good thing.
Lower overall ticket cost so parents can introduce their kids to GP racing and prolong the fan base.

 

[Rob Every]

I have finally outgrown F1 and do not really feel that bad about it, the modern cars and drivers do very little for me, and I find more excitement in just about any other form of motorsport.

You can now see, hear how utterly selfish and petulant the drivers are, the penalties are ridiculous to the point of mania and the tracks are dull, too much run off yet they are always bitched at for taking too much grass or kerb.

it is just a very silly looking sport right now for most. And this comes from a man who watched it avidly for 30 or more years and now really couldn't care less, so something has changed.

I have no idea how to fix it honestly, it seems so far up its behind.

 

[Diogo Goetz Brand]

The "I know how to fix Formula One" discussion again.
Even Ross Brawn has said time and time again that he doesn't know a magical formula that will make the races more exciting, but I'm sure one of us here will know the answer.

 

[RafPer]

Stephan Johanson had a great manifesto on his blog. This is an interview about it. He nails it.

How to Fix Formula 1, According to a Former F1 Racer

Many race fans think Formula 1 is broken. 1980s legend Stefan Johansson thinks he knows exactly how to fix it.

www.roadandtrack.com

 

[BillGuy]

Personally, I think the notions that the manufacturers are in it because of the technology or that they use F1 to actively develop technologies for eventual road car use aren’t realistic. The manufacturers are in it for the marketing exposure, plain and simple. The technology is just the “physical hook” they hang their involvement on. I’d be willing to bet that most, if not all, technological developments that find their way into road cars from F1 would be developed anyways even if F1 didn’t exist.

 

[DSW6]

My observation is that that opinions differ widely on whether F1 is broken- Not only amongst the fans who just spectate, but also amongst us who actively participate as drivers and crews in motorsports. I think one part of it is generational as others have already stated. One of my earliest memories of F1 was watching the live TV broadcast of the legendary battle between Villeneuve and Arnoux at Djion in 79.
There is no point in trying to explain to a different generation what made Formula 1 so great decades ago. What can't be denied though, is the ever declining role the F1 driver plays in the overall sum of factors determining the outcome of the race. Where individual drivers ability used to still be around 20% 35 years ago, studies have confirmed drivers have today less than 10% influence on a race.
The problem is pretty obvious to me- As technology advances the human influence is naturally overtaken to the point where measurable influence is so minimal, as to not produce a noticeable difference amongst all other factors and the parameters of the competition.
With technological influence continuing at the same rate I see only one clear outcome: Driver influence will continue to decline and rules will continue to be added to create artificial competition but will all ultimately fail because they neglect to address the most important part in the equation- The Human factor.
The only way I see to correctly address the problem is to increase a driver's influence again- Which can only be done by removing technology and outside influence and control by teams during the race itself.
People can disagree on whether F1 today is broken or not, but it's hard to argue which direction it is heading.
Personally, I get more enjoyment watching older GP's that had more driver influence over current races so heavily influenced by other factors.

 

[John Kerry]

I agree with alot of what your saying Paul but being so drastic probably means it won't happen.
My 2 cents worth is:
1.Reduce budgets and limit staff. Racing had character when it was about a great team leader, a great chief engineer/designer and a talented driver and these were the main ones who made a impact on the racing. Nowdays you usually don't even know anyone but the team principle and the driver and the driver has next to nothing to do with setups and strategy, there are 500 other people doing that.
2. I feel that tyres is a big issue as most races are won or lost on who manages the tires the best. This takes away from the race being about driver ability. This has been addressed in Formula E by having one standard tyre and no pit stops. Maybe this is a solution but tyres should not be deciding who wins races.
3. Downforce and grip, we can all agree that it needs to be fixed.
4.I like the idea of having a weight and horsepower limit for cars (like the GT3 series or they had before in the 90's etc) yet they can make (almost) any egine type they like. That was how they came up with engine invovation. This will be more significant and attractive to watch and follow than the current downforce struggle they have now.

I think these are the most urgent things from my point of view.

 

[roadyroad]

Just let F1 as it is, a leading innovative motorsport. If people don't like it, it will disappear (obviously it's not the case).

Create a new championship with cars having "classic" specifications which suit the taste of the older F1 fans.
And in 10 years, the young current F1 fans will state they don't like the modern F1 championship and the classic one, because for them, classic cars will be at least from 2010 (I always feel strange when in the current F1 games, classic content include 2010's cars...).

The issue there is that these 2010's classic cars will require much more money to run in a championship than older specs (from the 70's to the 90's), so these future old F1 fans won't get the classic championship they want. Then who will watch this classic championship at that time? That's a huge investment for something uncertain in 10 years.

 

[roadyroad]

My observation is that that opinions differ widely on whether F1 is broken- Not only amongst the fans who just spectate, but also amongst us who actively participate as drivers and crews in motorsports. I think one part of it is generational as others have already stated. One of my earliest memories of F1 was watching the live TV broadcast of the legendary battle between Villeneuve and Arnoux at Djion in 79.
There is no point in trying to explain to a different generation what made Formula 1 so great decades ago. What can't be denied though, is the ever declining role the F1 driver plays in the overall sum of factors determining the outcome of the race. Where individual drivers ability used to still be around 20% 35 years ago, studies have confirmed drivers have today less than 10% influence on a race.
The problem is pretty obvious to me- As technology advances the human influence is naturally overtaken to the point where measurable influence is so minimal, as to not produce a noticeable difference amongst all other factors and the parameters of the competition.
With technological influence continuing at the same rate I see only one clear outcome: Driver influence will continue to decline and rules will continue to be added to create artificial competition but will all ultimately fail because they neglect to address the most important part in the equation- The Human factor.
The only way I see to correctly address the problem is to increase a driver's influence again- Which can only be done by removing technology and outside influence and control by teams during the race itself.
People can disagree on whether F1 today is broken or not, but it's hard to argue which direction it is heading.
Personally, I get more enjoyment watching older GP's that had more driver influence over current races so heavily influenced by other factors.

Indeed, in the future this may lead to a championship of highly technologically advanced cars driven by AI.
Roborace is on the way.

 

[Boby Kim]

Max must become world champion. Then F1 is fixed for 17 milion dutch people

 

[Steve Bird]

I have finally outgrown F1 and do not really feel that bad about it, the modern cars and drivers do very little for me, and I find more excitement in just about any other form of motorsport.

You can now see, hear how utterly selfish and petulant the drivers are, the penalties are ridiculous to the point of mania and the tracks are dull, too much run off yet they are always bitched at for taking too much grass or kerb.

it is just a very silly looking sport right now for most. And this comes from a man who watched it avidly for 30 or more years and now really couldn't care less, so something has changed.

I have no idea how to fix it honestly, it seems so far up its behind.

I'm the same, I started going to the British GP in 88 and was hooked from there. I've been to over 80 GP's across the globe since. However, I stopped going after 2013 and haven't been to one since. Since it went pay 2 view I've subscribed to NOWTV once, last year and binned it for this year as i can't stand Sky TV coverage. Basically the sport has lost it's way completely and they feel its acceptable to charge nearly the price of a Premiership season ticket for each GP plus the fact that you have to pay through the nose nose to watch it on TV.

So now I'm into GT3 Endurance racing. The cars sound epic (Unlike F! now) and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg to attend even the 24 hour events.

You only have to listed to this to bring a big smile to your face. Sadly F1 sounds like a wet fart now.

 

[Nick Hill]

Stephan Johanson had a great manifesto on his blog. This is an interview about it. He nails it.

How to Fix Formula 1, According to a Former F1 Racer

Many race fans think Formula 1 is broken. 1980s legend Stefan Johansson thinks he knows exactly how to fix it.

www.roadandtrack.com

Wow, he makes a lot of sense. Very well reasoned, sensible proposals that don't take the essence of F1 out of F1. Headed off to read his manifesto now.

 

[Cheesenium]

Personally, I think the notions that the manufacturers are in it because of the technology or that they use F1 to actively develop technologies for eventual road car use aren’t realistic. The manufacturers are in it for the marketing exposure, plain and simple. The technology is just the “physical hook” they hang their involvement on. I’d be willing to bet that most, if not all, technological developments that find their way into road cars from F1 would be developed anyways even if F1 didn’t exist.

The new A45 uses some of the F1 techs with one of the highest engine efficiency of an engine. F1 tech is much more advanced than anything that is viable for road cars. We won't see those tech coming to road cars in years but they will slowly drip into supercars first before they come into a cheap road car. In a way, it is a testbed for future engine designs for far-future technology. Whether it is worth it at the end or not is another question since EV is rising quickly.

Le Mans, Formula E and so on are much faster in development and refinement of technology for road viable cars, partly because they also use more road cars related technologies with rules written to be more practical focused.

 

[PottoGadd]

You hit the nail on the head. Unfortunately I don't believe history can ever be repeated properly because we already have the knowledge. My favourite twenty-ish years in Formula 1 (and motorsport in general) is the 1967-1987 period partly because of the innovation and technology associated with that time.

 

[nepal roade]

It's a shame F1 didn't have you @Paul Jeffrey instead of Bernie. He single-handedly ruined F1 by corporatising it. When you early on mentioned Ronnie Peterson you got my approval. I'm an old git so I watched all of his F1 races and he's always been my favorite racer for entertainment value.
I would add just one thing that you missed. Get rid of team orders. Each car gets its own garage and crew and complete independence. The racing should go back to being about the racer not the manufacturer.

 

[AxelP800]

The one who needs fixing are the "fans" who need to shut up and enjoy the racing and technology and not stuck in past

 

[shomke]

Well you would like to go back to the 70's, with added security of course. I can't agree more with that, but unfortunately that will never happen. Better watching another serie.
I personally find that modern F1 are ugly and races are boring (22 races, my god). So I no longer watch, I just check results...

 

[Helldriver]

add ramps

Ramps would be nice but the races wouldn´t last too long.
Maybe someone should build a track with a straight, that´s upside down. We all know, that F1 cars can develope enough downforce to drive on the ceiling. That would be epic.

 

[Thang Nguyen]

the 2020 season is heavily disrupted.
SHOULD the worst things happen we'll have to wait for 2021.
how to fix F1: add teams, but it's very difficult.

 

[2112]

I am not especially for the come back of manual gearbox.

Why not? As Paul inferred: It takes a certain level of skill to drive a car fast with a manual gearbox, even one with a dog box. I can remember many, many times that passes were made in races because a driver missed a shift and I can remember sim races of my own where my own missed shift, or the missed shift of a competing driver, resulted in a pass or even an unexpected win.

F1 drivers are supposed to be the most skilled racers on the planet. Every one should know how to use a manual and using one is definitely an ability that must be developed.