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Don't worry guys, when Bernie, the man you hate so much is gone, and FOM is completely controlled by CVC, we won't have any races in Europe at all. So look forward to getting rid of the man who took control of the Spa race rights, purely so we could have it on the calender.

Without Bernie Formula One wouldn't be where it is today, wether you love or hate him, he's made and shaped Formula One into what it is today from it's humble beginnings, gotta give him respect for that

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3x TBKL rFactor Hillclimb champion

If someone found a cure for cancer, would that allow him to rape little children?

lolwut, how can you compare the two

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"An idea whose time has come cannot be stopped by any army or any government"


3x TBKL rFactor Hillclimb champion

I'm just trying to say that someone who did a very good thing can still do bad things too.

yep, I agree, I just feel that Bernie gets far too much stick and what he's done is never actually appreciated, I certainly don't agree with everything he does, just look at Bahrain for example!

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"An idea whose time has come cannot be stopped by any army or any government"


3x TBKL rFactor Hillclimb champion

Bernie took over the rights to the Belgian GP after it was lost before, simply to keep it on the calender. How is that being twisted as a bad thing?

Whenever something bad happens, everyone blames Bernie. It's always Bernies fault, even if it has nothing to do with commercial rights and calender, he gets the blame. The reality is that Bernie and FOM only do so much in F1 now days, and even in there, Bernie only has a small part of that now.

CVC owns 70%
JPMorgan owns 20%
Bernie owns 10%

Now, when CVC says something, do you think Bernie gets a choice? Really? Remember that CVC and JPMorgan have *no* motorsport interest at all. None. In the slightest. Zero. So why is Spa still on the calender? Because despite it making a loss, Bernie wants it there. And do you think it's a coincidence that financial firms such CVC and JPMorgan are in control, and F1 starts going to the rich countries? When Bernie was in charge, F1 was in Europe. Now he isn't, and he isn't.

And frankly, I'm continually amazed that F1 fans here who are knowledgeable and sensible still don't even know the basics of who owns what and who has the power in F1. Because I'll tell you right now - when Bernie dies or leaves, and CVC And JPMorgan are completely in control of the rights, it'll be bye bye any race in the bottom bracket of earnings and hello to whoever has money at the time. And let it be official - I called it right now.

But isn't Bernie responsible for selling the rights to them in the first place??

I was basically saying that I don't understand how F1 in general doesn't manage that the best track on the current F1 calendar is just a certainty on the calendar. It's location is great, the track is great, fans love it, drivers love it, teams love it, the weather is uncertain, so much history is written, the best corner on the F1 calendar, etc etc.

It would be the same like saying to Barcelona you can't enter the Champions league next year.

We owe Bernie a lot for what he has done for F1. I know that. don't get me wrong. But perhaps he should use his influence to keep this one on the calendar instead of focussing on races in the middle of nowhere, i.e. Bahrain, Turkey etc

Right, which is why he took over the rights to the race when the previous owners were unable to afford to keep it on the calender. Which I mention every time and it gets ignored. But don't worry - when Bernies dead, Belgium will be the first race to go and we'll end up with the Formula One Desert Championship because that's where the money is. Then Bernies influence will be more apparent to those who continually attack him.



Money in F1 is out of control, on all sides. Whether it be teams, commercial rights, ticket prices. It's no surprise that a single rich man is still not able to keep control of such a massive undertaking. Idealy the rights would go to someone completely focused on the sport - but Silverstone and CCWS are great examples of what happens when people in the sport try to run the sport - they balls it up massively.

Will that really happen? Will the majority of those who follow F1 these days still follow it then? Will Major companies still be willing to invest in the teams and tracks then?
I strongly doubt that the situation you sketch is at all good for the sport as a whole.
If CVC really makes it a Formula One Desert Championship, they'll be crawling back to Europe within years begging the tracks, drivers and teams to come back.
Those Sheiks just don't care enough about F1, for them it's just another toy. And the common people cannot afford to go.

Well it's already happening, and you all sit and watch it, despite moaning about it continually. We dropped Spa before, and F1 still grew. We'll drop Spa again and it'll still grow. We've got more Tilke tracks than ever and it's still growing. We're racing in places like China, Bahrain and South Korea, which not only have no motorsport heritage and a small fan base, but large political issues as well, and it's still growing. Do you really think that if we remove Belgium and Silverstone that people will stop watching? Of course they won't. To stop F1s popularity you actually need to make whole sale changes that are unpopular like NASCAR did, which is beginning to see issues with struggling attendances and ratings. For that to happen it also requires the FIA to be make changes, but since they are purely motorsport orientated, they do tend to think in terms of the sport, rather than finances (being non-profit helps too).

Whilst I may have painted a rather extreme picture of what a possible scenario could be, the fact is, since these are financial institutions that have no motorsport interest at all, they are going to do what they want purely for financial gain. To suggest they won't is purely being naive. We know that now, and for the foreseeable future that the money is in these places, so that's where they'll go. They may not drop European rounds completely, however we've already seen a decline, and are continuing to see it, and there is no reason to suggest that this trend won't continue.

As for running back to Europe begging - don't be silly. They won't need to beg. When F1 turns round and asks Silverstone "Hey, I know you haven't held an F1 race for 10 years, but do you fancy holding one again?" they won't need to beg. Silverstone will jump at the chance - as will almost any circuit. Begging? The series is the one that is in control of the situation. They have the upper hand, they have the leverage, and they always will. We currently have 20 odd tracks, and lots more that want positions on the calender, and lots more that are fit to hold a race but may not be currently interested, and lots more that are being developed and we'll hear about in future. They won't need to beg for anything - the tracks will.

Jaime Alguersuari's been signed as Pirelli test driver:
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/98467

YAY, NO FRENCH GRAND PRIX! BERNIE AND POLITICS RULES!
VIVE LA FRANCE




Fuckin' idiots, this country doesn't deserve more a Grand Prix that no one wants to see. or any Motorsport event. Even Le Mans. and Bernie/CVC/Bankers doesn't arrange the situation. Autophobic Morons.

At Least, Spa will stay, but i was really hoping for the return of one of the most prestigious Grand Prix. I was wrong.

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Motorsport Lover since 1988
First TBK member to post it with a wiimote

This post is useless without source....

http://www.autohebdo.fr/f1/f1/breve-25-25-22602/300312-pas-d-annonce-pour-le-gp-de-france

Only french, sorry.

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Motorsport Lover since 1988
First TBK member to post it with a wiimote

...using Google Translate

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Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

http://www.lotusf1team.com/With-a-Littl ... m-Our.html

Red Bull sent a (fake) invoice to Lotus for outsourced Fire Services at Sepang.

doesnt work when it's still March 31st in most parts of the world