Comments on: Are FOTA a force for good in Formula 1?

By: GeorgeK

GeorgeK — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 10:04:18 +0000

A committee of competing interests will never out perform a dictatorship of one. Or in this case two (Max and Bernie).

I’ve always maintained that the teams should set the bar for racing related interests, Bernie control the series scheduling, and the FIA with safety. Unfortunately the teams have never been able to form a united front on much of anything, with Ferrari usually leading the way in self interested cut outs.

Will Ferrari maintain the unity required to get what FOTA allegedly want, or will the teams fall apart in spasms of self centered issues?

The above is the only reason that Max can take the lead in foisting his blurred vision on the sport. The teams generally can gain no consensus on anything important.

By: Gman

Gman — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 07:41:19 +0000

I was pleased to first hear of the creation of the FOTA, but I wondered just how much punch it would have when the teams were forced to square off with Max and Bernie. This meeting, in my eyes, is a golden opportunity to see just what the teams can do about several key issues. The calendar debate is one that I will be keeping a close eye on- not just because I am hoping for F1 to return here to North America, but mostly because the FOTA seems to have done little about it while GPs fall of the schedule at an alarming rate.

As for the other issues, if the FOTA is to have any impact, it will take a united front led by the group’s powerbrokers (Hello, Luca!!!) to see them stand a chance of getting things done their way. Bottom line, the FOTA is a good deal and a step in the right direction, but it remains to be seen just how much it gets accomplished.

By: Too Good

Too Good — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:10:13 +0000

Just repeating what has already been covered in other comments. The manufacturers and team principles have conflicting interests (e.g. Briatore is demanding 15000 Kms testing cap be dropped, Ferrari never adhered to test limits in GPMA days and they were not part of GPMA). Bernie/Max have manipulated these conflict of interests and made their position safer. As such I won’t be surprised if FOTA goes in same direction as GPMA

By: PJA

PJA — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 13:25:30 +0000

F1 needs someone to stand upto Max and Bernie, but can it be FOTA? I don’t think so. Max is the master politician and Bernire the shrewd businessman, and they still have most of the power. FOTA may win some small battles but sadly in the end Max and Bernie will probably still come out on top.

By: SoLiD

SoLiD — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 11:34:48 +0000

I think they can be a force in F1.
But Max and Bernie are very smart and they will play their cards like they want it.
Like with the engines, they can propose a very very bad id to just get their original ‘not so bad’ id.
Because they know that most teams won’t run a standard engine. That would be just too silly, and you want the likes of toyota, honda, etc to be happy!

By: Keith Collantine

Keith Collantine — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 10:37:30 +0000

Mani – I’m working on one at the moment, but there could still be further changes in time for next season. In the meantime you can find relevant articles here:

http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/category/issues/rules/

By: Tim

Tim — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 10:14:43 +0000

Can FOTA be a force for good? Yes, it can be but only time will tell if it will be. Unity is the key – the teams need to focus on the interests they share rather than those they don’t. One advantage FOTA has over the now defunct FOCA is that it represents all teams, including Ferrari.

Max and Bernie are cunning negotiators who will often say and do anything to seize the initiative and get what they want. FOTA needs a similarly ruthless figurehead to dictate the agenda, or it’ll never be competing on even terms. If Max and/or Bernie can divide and conquer the teams then they will without a second thought.

The standard engine gambit is, I reckon, a negotiating ploy to force the teams to deliver on their promise of cheap customer engine deals. The threat of a standard engine has to be kept real to ensure that the agreed alternative doesn’t falter. Low cost customer engines have been promised by the teams for some time but not delivered – Eddie Jordan recently cited this as his reason for selling his team to Midland.

But that doesn’t mean that teams shouldn’t take a standard engine as a serious threat to their interests – if they don’t push on and do what they’ve agreed to on customer engines then standard engines may a reality. I can’t see Max backing down if he’s pushed into a corner on the issue – that Formula 2 appears to be going ahead for 2009 is a timely warning…

By: mani

mani — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:52:54 +0000

Keith, Do you’ve have an article (or a link) which summarizes the entire 2009 rules & regulation changes?

By: stevepCambsUK

stevepCambsUK — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:08:25 +0000

Only time will tell with FOTA whether they are strong or weak. I hope they realise that their association can be a strong one if they all stick together and do what they believe is right for the sport and not be ‘pushed’ into using the same engine for every car.
Yes the cost has to come down but the same engine in every car? What a sad day that will be for F1.
Would a Ferrari be a Ferrari without a ferrari engine or a mclaren without a merc engine? etc etc
I have more faith in FOTA than the ‘crazy 2′, i would like the manufacturers to still build their own engines with a price cap in place, surely that is better than ripping the heart out of the sport?
Qualifying should be run with the same amount of fuel per car for each session and keep the same knock out system.

By: DG

DG — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 08:24:40 +0000

Bernie and Max have set up FOTA purely as an arena for the Manufacturers and Teams to squabble in. Bernie and Max are playing them all for fools and will refuse any sensible ideas they come up with, while implementing their own even sillier ideas on a ‘take it or get out’ basis. I know there is little proof of that yet, but none of the teams have refused to play as yet….
Also, all the time Bernie says ‘I know everyone agrees with me’, he is forcing FOTA to come to an agreement, playing the political game very shrewdly, and making the FOTA members ask ‘who told him we agreed?’.
Its a very clever ploy by Bernie and Max to use Ferrari to keep control of the other teams, and at the same time have a useful way of blaming everybody else if nothing gets agreed. Although both Bernie and Max will implement their proposals no matter what anybody else says, and apparently even if it means losing Teams, Manufacturers, Circuits, Fans and Drivers!
(As an aside, shouldn’t Max and the FIA be more concerned with making the rules understandable and consistant than with the look of the ‘Show’?)

By: Dan Brunell

Dan Brunell — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 07:25:31 +0000

The FOTA has actually survived a lot longer and have done a lot more than I ever expected when Bernie announced it. I figured that they would be a puppet organization for Bernie to use as leverage against Max and the FIA to get what he want.

To an extent that has been true. Bernie has been wise to let the teams take the led. It helps for once Ferrari and the rest of the teams are basically on the same page now. That alone shows how out of control many of the rules, regulations, and the sport in general has become.