TBK-Light.com

This is the same ABC\ESPN that just fired literally everyone in their motorsport division, yes?

The only reason they took the deal is because Bratches offered it to them for pennies on the dollar, and because they are taking the whole production a la carte from Sky, they won't have to spend any extra money producing it themselves. It is there to fill airtime, as most of those people in the US that care enough about F1 to drag themselves out of bed to watch it live will sign up to the streaming service when it is ready.

And I have grave suspicions about anyone who considers David Croft to be 'quality commentary'.

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Bobby K shitting on largely British journalists, in particular Joe's Award, for intimating that his right hand is useless.

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/13332 ... ays-kubica

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Dan Wheldon ¦ 1978-2011
Marco Simoncelli ¦ 1987-2011
Jules Bianchi ¦ 1989-2015
Justin Wilson ¦ 1978-2015

Yeah, I know he's mad and I don't care. I do not care. I did not care then. I do not care now. I'm here to race him.

I liked NBC's coverage so I'm sad to see it go. I don't think ESPN will even try to have their coverage match NBC's, and we know there will be more ad-breaks as it's a "higher level" channel in more homes.

I just hope that ESPN doesn't pre-empt any of the races next season (is it bad that I expect them to do that? maybe it's because they did it a few times with IndyCar, NASCAR and NHRA in the last 10 years), and that a other racing series can take advantage of the filling the spot that F1 had on NBC to get themselves better coverage too.

Also wonder if any of the F1 support series will have TV coverage in the US next year. We haven't had any TV or streaming coverage for GP3 or Porsche Supercup since SPEED died.

Remind me how many times for how many years you’ve almost exclusively watched the US F1 coverage provided by Speed and NBC?

And as for your comment on ESPN, from what I’ve read and heard they’ve been restructuring their entire organization over many months. This isn’t just motorsport related.

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BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

Yes, Disney have had to cut their cloth significantly because their revenues are down, and lots of sports departments got downsized or eliminated. I wouldn't trust them to deliver quality coverage for any of those sports either.

You are right in that it's been a long time since I listened to a race with Varsha (Diffey), Matchett and Hobbs, but I have listened to both Diffey (IndyCar) and Varsha (FE) recently. I've always been happy with Diffey and Varsha didn't sound any worse than he was when I heard him do F1. I cannot speak as to Matchett and Hobbs, but what I do know is that however much they have declined, it cannot be much if it all worse than Sky, where Croft's "bantering" is now pissing off even those who used to praise him above Ben Edwards, Brundle is being accused of phoning it in, and Ted is disappearing up his own fundament.

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Dan Wheldon ¦ 1978-2011
Marco Simoncelli ¦ 1987-2011
Jules Bianchi ¦ 1989-2015
Justin Wilson ¦ 1978-2015

Yeah, I know he's mad and I don't care. I do not care. I did not care then. I do not care now. I'm here to race him.

Indeed. But ESPN are not producing any F1 content, they are buying and broadcasting. So I'm not sure about the point you are trying to make. NBC were producing and broadcasting, as were Speed. The productions of those two broadcasters were virtually the same and based on the same model all US sports broadcasters use for every sport. 3-4 people in the studio / booth for pre and post event plus commentary, 1 person on the ground to provide in-play information. The difference between all other US sports and F1 is that Speed and NBC never had their studio / commentators at the event, bar Austin. They commentated on what they saw on screen, which is what us armchair enthusiasts do. They often were so engrossed in talking between themselves that that missed critical action and by not being at the event couldn't portray what was happening directly in front of them.



When I moved out to the USA I quickly realised how I'd been spoiled by the quality of the broadcasts from Sky, BBC and ITV. Yes there are annoyances from particular people and their attitudes. Yet those broadcasters are still head and shoulders above what I've been watching these past 7 years. From time to time I would download a BBC or Sky race instead of watching live on Speed or NBC. I understand and agree with what you say about Croft, Brundle and Ted.

When looking at the NBC / Speed crew, you cannot look at them individually, look at them as a group. Leigh Diffey is an awesome commentator (his WSBK stuff all those years back was fantastic), Bob Varsha on his day was very good however he's long since departed the F1 team. You put these people together and it is not a good mix. I cannot stand Leigh Diffey as part of the F1 crew. Matchett is forever talking about his time at Benetton and shouting "WOW!" as if he's a poor tribute act to Owen Wilson and Hobbs just needs to retire from the booth as he brings little to nothing in the way of quality commentary or analysis. The US broadcasts versus UK are night and day. I appreciate that I've had F1 coverage since I moved to USA, I'd rather have something than nothing. But that doesn't mean I cannot be happy at the opportunity of having the same broadcast quality I experienced for 30 years in England (along with those irritants), here in USA from 2018 onwards.

_________________
BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

My point is that they don't care. They have bought 125 hours of coverage for virtually no money and they won't be putting any further effort into it, with the possible exception of the US\Mexico double. If you don't care that they don't care then you'll be fine with the level of their coverage, but there are others who were hoping for more.

Pre-emption should not be a problem as all but 5 of the races are pencilled in for ESPN2 anyway.

And for the commentary, maybe it will be better, but maybe Croft will great on you just as badly as the NBC lot did. I have never rated him, but I am surprised at how quickly there has been a growth of antipathy towards him over the last 2 seasons or so, even from some people who used to really enjoy his work.

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Dan Wheldon ¦ 1978-2011
Marco Simoncelli ¦ 1987-2011
Jules Bianchi ¦ 1989-2015
Justin Wilson ¦ 1978-2015

Yeah, I know he's mad and I don't care. I do not care. I did not care then. I do not care now. I'm here to race him.

at least they broadcast the races live in USA since most races are at early morning in contiguous US territory, right?

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Motorsports trend for 2024: climate change ruining races everywhere

Yeah at least you're getting the races live without having to remortgage your house to pay for it.

I've become quiet partial to Crofty, he's certainly better than shouty Ben, although Martin drags the coverage down a few pegs everytime he opens his mouth (apart from his dedicated segments).

Ben Edwards is the closest thing we'll get to the next Murray Walker, his in depth knowledge and enthusiasm for the sport knows no bounds

For so long, it seemed like he would be F1 commentary's missed opportunity, only getting into the periphery of the sport via Eurosport/F1digital/F1InCinema while also bringing us quality commentary on BTCC/Champcar and whatever else he put his voice to

Then he finally got the F1 gig in 2012 (no coincidence, apparently that he only got the gig when Brundle left them, according to rumours they fell out long ago and Martin refused to work with him) and it's been a revelation
No more "it's all about my ego and refueling strategy" James Allen or "Lads lads lads!" David Croft

Also not liking Ben Edwards because he's "shouty" and favouring Croft, lololol, Croft is 10x worse in that regard

I for one much prefer a commentator to be enthusiastic and excited about what's unfolding among them rather than dry and reserved like the other Radio Le Mans guys that aren't Hindy
"And it appears, there, as you may be able to see, that a car has turned upside down. That is quite the development in this race, it will effect every regarding pit strategy too, my word"

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RIP Birmingham Wheels: here's some of the crash videos I recorded when it was there:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIaKIE ... 5t9d5PvoHA

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/paulhadsley

Either ESPN don't care, or they got the bargain of the century and will see it as a big opportunity to capitalize on. I'm not assuming it will be one or the other, instead I'll give them the benefit of the doubt until I see what they offer. And even then, I've become so disenfranchised with the quality of Speed and NBC that I'll happily take a less is more approach from ESPN, if that's what they do.



Yes and no. TV packages with various providers here in USA vary in quality and price. The package I'm on includes an add-on for the sports channels. I don't pay for a dedicated F1 channel like I would with Sky, but I still pay.

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BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

While I hope it's not a problem, I think it will be sadly. I recall a few NASCAR races being pre-empted off of ESPN2 in past (a couple of Xfinity races I believe in the most recent era. Also there's the ABC / ESPNews fiasco from 2014 with the Cup race at Charlotte where there was no channels open to port the broadcast at). Also have to remember that a ton of big-level sports air regularly on ESPN2 these days. It's not a question of if, but when.

Also while this is a apple vs. oranges comparison (in terms of racing series & size of channel anyways). There has been a few WEC races that have been pre-empted off of FS2 at 2 or 3 AM (most recently the race at Shanghai a couple weeks back). While it might be a apple & oranges comparison but both series & channel is smaller compared to F1 and ESPN2.

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F1 & Liberty trying to get the possible Miami street race on the schedule by 2020.
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/c ... 41413.html

Bah I've known Ben for near on 30 years, he likes to convey excitement through shouting, I pitty the poor sound engineer who has to work with him. I guess Ben get's the blame but he's not the main problem, the coverage is very dumbed down on Channel 4.

But anyway, I wouldn't consider either of us to be wrong, after all didn't you lord Kalkhoven, Forsythe & Gentilozzi as the saviors of Champcar a few years ago? We all know how well that worked out

They may not be using Sky's coverage...
http://www.roadandtrack.com/motorsports ... stitution/



I also think the streaming services Liberty say will launch next year will be available in the US.

If they're looking at that option, it'll be because Sky are asking too much for their piggyback.

It could be very cheap to do it that way - rent a cupboard somewhere in Salford with a TV screen, hire 2 or 3 no-marks to do commentary, and link it back to the US. You could even sell it to other English-speaking markets by undercutting Sky. Holy shit, someone else made a profit out of F1 besides Bernie.

And yes, the streaming service will be available in the US. That's why NBC said no - the audience is going to be cannibalised.

_________________
Dan Wheldon ¦ 1978-2011
Marco Simoncelli ¦ 1987-2011
Jules Bianchi ¦ 1989-2015
Justin Wilson ¦ 1978-2015

Yeah, I know he's mad and I don't care. I do not care. I did not care then. I do not care now. I'm here to race him.

Edwards >>>>>>>>>>>>> Croft >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Legard

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Follow me on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/135625678@N06/

Corrected.

_________________
BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

The NBC crew was nothing to write home about, but you could at least tell they wanted to put the extra effort to build an audience for F1 in the States, certainly moreso than the FOX/SPEED era or anything else before it. To go from that to "The Mouse" investing pennies into their worldwide acquisition, not bothering to pay for experienced Sky commentary, then tossing it between poker reruns and NFL Pre-Pre-Pre-Game Show #527 and forgetting about it comes off as a step in the wrong direction. Could be wrong though, time will tell.

This is why people are upset over a stupid logo. It's not what it looks like, it's what it potentially represents for the sport in general: laziness, uncertainty, devoid of personality, among numerous other demons.

Ah yes, I forgot Allen

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In fairness, this is pretty much exactly how the BBC did a lot of their F1 coverage before 1997. The only expense was usually sending Murray and one or two others out to each race, but sometimes they didn't even do that*. Getting the right no-marks could save this from being terrible.

* This is even better than how Murray often did BTCC coverage, which was to commentate on a non-live video feed of the race.

Sauber has signed a deal with Alfa Romeo

https://www.sauberf1team.com/news/the-s ... alfa-romeo

Goodbye Ericsson

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