USF1: The case against
A1GP already has an American team - but will F1 one day?
Guest writer Peter Anderson, who posts comments as ZeroGee, is deeply sceptical about the USF1 project. Here’s why.
As I’ve written here before I think the US F1 team is little more than a stunt. Here’s my take on their plans and why I think that this will be the very definition of an F1 team failure.
Logistics
There have been very few true new teams to F1 over the last decade. They’ve all been re-badged efforts of other operations with the possible exception of BAR who only bought Tyrrell to get some of the gear and licences. Stewart F1 was formed in 1997 (and is now Red Bull Racing via Jaguar) and Renault is simply the Benetton team.
So Peter Windsor and Ken Anderson have decided to do several unthinkable things before breakfast. The first is to find adequate funding to build a Formula 1 team from scratch, in twelve months, based in Charlotte, North Carolina. I honestly have no idea where to start with that. Ken Anderson is quoted as saying that most of the races aren’t in Europe any more, so that’s not an issue.
Poppycock. These people are going to spend their entire lives in the air. At least with the European teams, they can wander Europe in their transporters. While I’m not suggesting all team infrastructure will be kept Stateside, they’re already committing themselves to some serious air miles. That’s going to cost them, €55m (£49m) budgets or not. Much of Toyota’s problems are attributed to basing themselves in Cologne, away from the epicentre of F1 in southern England.
Something breaks at the track in Belgium? Easy for the European teams. Pack the part as hand luggage on Ryanair or Easy Jet and we’re done. North Carolina? Well, that’s a flight to DC or NY, then across the Atlantic to another hub such as London or Paris and then on to Spa. The majority of races will be very early in the morning for the factory so there will be considerable staff disconnect with the racing operation.
Money
The two driving forces of the team seem – and I do stress that word – to have tenuous grasp on the economics. Ken Anderson seems to think that because of the recession carbon fibre is cheap therefore so will it be for F1. Er, okay. Windsor says the team will be a ‘lean, mean skunkworks approach.’ (More on ‘skunkworks’ at the bottom of this page). Laudable. But probably close to impossible with their geographic remoteness. Part of the point of the new rules is to allow teams to slim down their operations but with a whopping great ocean separating the racing operation from the factory, there will much duplication of duties.
All of the things they’re saying about basing themselves in America are just plain rhetoric. Windsor again: “We can do it in America; we can do it differently from everybody else.” Yes, I’m sure that’s what Michael Andretti said to the McLaren team. That went well.
There’s another parallel with BAR, too – Adrian Reynard and his team singularly failed to get to grips with the differences between F1 and IndyCar. Without wishing to be unpleasant, F1 is another world away again from the technology of NASCAR, a name synonymous with Charlotte.
Opportunity missed?
For me, the biggest own goal is passing up the opportunity to buy Honda Racing. Maybe not to race this year, but they’ll have a fine base to start from. Although the ‘here’s one I prepared earlier’ mentality does not make a racing team automatically successful, it avoids the trauma of starting from scratch. The more I think about it, the more I think insanity has prevailed.
Not having an engine supplier is the biggest reason I think this is going to be a PR disaster. They’ll be scrambling for a supplier and all this flashy carry-on is just going to land them in hot water. If Honda’s buyer materialises, that will probably hoover up the Mercedes engines. Toyota is busy being out-performed by Williams with their own engines, BMW don’t look to keen to be handing out power plants and I can’t see Windsor dropping his trousers for the Ferrari engine fund. I can’t see him being told what to do by Stefano Domenicali. Or maybe I can. Windsor did spend a lot of time being nice to Ferrari in his columns last year.
And of course, there’s Bernie and Max. There’s plenty of motherhood statements from the pair of them supporting the idea, but let’s be honest, they’re looking to align themselves with any good news they can lay their hands on. I can’t see them caring whether the team lives or dies as long as they’re a distraction for long enough.
Don’t get me wrong – I’d love to see them get this thing up and, more importantly, provide good racing. I want a 24 car grid, I want good, hard racing and lots of hungry drivers in with a shot at winning. American drivers have had a poor recent history in F1 and the fanciful Danica Patrick/Scott Speed dream team is just that. As is the whole thing. They may get to the grid in 2010, but they’ll have an awfully short, painful life.
Which will be the result of blindness to reality from the likes of Windsor and Anderson. Let’s not forget, people get hurt when these things plough into the dirt. People lose their jobs, get the stigma of being a part of that failure and the reputations of promising, talented people are damaged, often irreparably. Windsor and Anderson are shooting their mouths off but their trousers aren’t even on, let alone backing up those mouths.
This is a guest article by Peter Anderson. If you want to write a guest article for F1 Fanatic you can find all the information you need here.
Extra from Keith:
On Tuesday I asked on Twitter whether anyone agreed USF1 had more chance of making it to F1 in 2010 than Honda do in 2009. I got a mix of positive and negative replies:
gasheaduk – Definitely USF1. Although personally I can’t see either happening.
jackstow – Honda F1 in 2009 is dead now. Not even time to re-fit the new engine for the first race. USF1 in 2010? Nah. Negative maybe.
formula1blog – I’m echoing that. Good call Keith.
F1Badger – What’s with all the USF1 hype – really. They made an announcement and we learned what exactly. yawn…
keirdre – USF1 will never happen, so I’d go with Honda being (just) more likely for appear next season.
Hitchcockm00 – Easily USF1. Surely there’s no chance Honda can make the start of the season even if they found a buyer.
What do you think of USF1′s chances of making it to the F1 grid? Have your say in the comments.
themark said on 26th February 2009, 8:00
How anyone can think USF1 has a better chance than Honda is beyond me. At least Honda already have a car, and facilities, and trained staff. USF1 has… Peter Windsor and a lot of hot air. Mini-sponsorship? Yeah… that’s OK if you’re a single mother in Bangalore, not a multi-million dollar racing venture. The fact that they haven’t even attempted to get in on the Honda deal smacks of pride over practicality. USF1… no way. And seriously…Danica? Even Bourdais (who won a few more races than her) had to practically beg for a ride.
Gman said on 26th February 2009, 21:37
I love how everyone like you thinks that buying Honda is the answer to the world’s problems. What dose the curent Honda operation have……
- One race win, in lucky conditions at that!
- A lead driver who is over-priced and often over-hyped, and a seemingly already-confirmed second driver who will line up this year with just as many F1 starts as any USF1 driver will next year.
- Experience yes, but did that get them anything other than a lucky podium this season? That is in no way a knock on any staff at Honda, but it just gose to show that experience isn’t the cure-all some of you think it is….
There’s plenty of good reasons why Anderson and Windsor diden’t buy the Honda package.
TeamOrders said on 26th February 2009, 8:02
Unfortunately I’d say they have 2 chances: buckleys and none.
Adrian said on 26th February 2009, 8:21
Hmm…I’m not sure what to think of USf1. On the one hand I’d love to see a new team succeed and I’ve always favoured the underdog so I would love to see them come in and do things their own way and be successful. On the other hand, there’s a reason all the top teams go about racing in more-or-less the same way…it’s what has been proven to work.
I think I’m going to reserve judgement on USF1 until we see something more concrete.
As for Honda, if you’d asked me on Tuesday I would have said they don’t look like making it to the grid in 09…now we’re hearing they may be testing the 09 car next week…I’m inclined to say that they will…
PS: Keith, I’m going to starting an F1 themed blog in the next week or so, how are you with cross linking?
DG said on 26th February 2009, 8:40
F1 still based in Europe? We are close to losing Britain, France has gone, Spa might go, Germany is going, Turkey is going. That leaves Monaco and Valencia to represent ‘Europe’.
Most of the new circuits are in the Middle East and Far East, as are the new ones promised, and will be just as easy to reach from America as from Europe, if not easier. If USF1 have a second base by 2010, it might as well be in Bahrain or Singapore as Britain. Any of the current teams that are left by then ought to be considering a move in that direction too.
I can understand the outcry that NASCAR people might want to try something a little different, but then nobody expect McLaren to make cars that would win Le Mans either. Why do USF1 have to rush to find an engine this year? Maybe its better to see who is left in the business before you sign the contract….
Brendan said on 26th February 2009, 8:41
Toyota was a brand new team in 2002.
Also, I’ve heard BMW as a possible engine supplier. It’s purely conjecture, but BMW has a big manufacturing plant (building Z4s and X5s) in Spartanburg, SC, very close to Charlotte, NC. Even if BMW isn’t interested, the teams did agree to provide cheap engines to anyone who wanted them, so some team would have to step forward and do that (Ferrari or Mercedes probably the most likely candidates).
Lastly, Bernie and Max are aligning themselves with good news because what’s good for F1 (another team to fill out the grid, especially with US roots) is good for Bernie and Max. They can make a lot of things happen magically, including that engine deal.
Pink Peril said on 26th February 2009, 8:43
I’m still on the believe-it-when-I-see-it approach, with both ex-Honda and USF1.
Ideally, I’d like both teams to be on the grid next year, along with Prodrive. That would be awesome. But am I prepared to put money on that happening? Better odds with tattslotto, methinks….
SoLiD said on 26th February 2009, 8:46
I think they will get the cosworth package the fia wants teams to get!
Or the teams must provide an affordable engine, and that could be anyone I guess :)
Chassis… Or they are working on it longer then we think and know or they have fia guarantee that they can use customer cars… wich I’m still thinking has a good oppertunity to get the nod because of the recession!
Duncan said on 26th February 2009, 10:32
DG – Le Mans 1995, Mclaren F1 GTR!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1995_24_Hours_of_Le_Mans
Bernie will get them an engine supply, no worries about that. They’ll get to the grid, but might not last that long.
Tim said on 26th February 2009, 14:36
And Williams played a key role in the design of BMW’s winning LM car, too.
Mouse_Nightshirt said on 26th February 2009, 13:12
Considering the news is today that Honda have a takeover contract signed, I really think we’re more likely to see Honda this year than USF1 next.
F1Yankee said on 26th February 2009, 13:51
where do i begin with this?
your entire logistics argument is rubbish. windsor and anderson have said there will be a satellite office, possibly in spain. 9 of the 17 races this year will be outside of europe, with 5 of those are on the pacific rim and 1 in south america. “The majority of races will be very early in the morning for the factory so there will be considerable staff disconnect with the racing operation.” is possibly the weakest point of your entire argument – it just doesn’t make sense. my own office is open for business 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and it makes no difference whether a part is fabricated or computer simulation is run at 3AM or 3PM. it’s worth noting that i could buy nearly anything in the world and have it in my hands in roughly 24 hours or so. if something should break in belgium, they will pull a replacement out of the truck, just like every other team.
regarding money, your main argument against is again the “remoteness” of north america. then you go on to talk about things completely irrelevant, finishing with “charlotte builds nascar cars, therefore f1 is beyond them.”
information coming from usf1 is pretty thin, but your bashing is absolutely diaphanous. it’s clear you don’t want to see an american f1 team, and seeing your circular logic printed here detracts from an otherwise excellent site.
good day to you, sir.
Fred Schechter said on 26th February 2009, 17:46
Thank you F1 Yankee.
Now I don’t have to say all the same things (I agree with you).
Oy!
Now would someone get Pete (Peter Windsor) to start selling some USF1 gear so we can support our team?!
(Yeah,, I’m poking the other teams in the eye a bit, us crazy Americans haven’t had anyone directly to cheer for in F1 since Scott, so cut us some slack, we’re excited and we have a chance to play in this big game we all love called F1!)
(Darn it just checked,, looks like someone already hacked the USF1.com site,, arrrgh!!!)
Luigismen said on 26th February 2009, 13:53
I’m sorry, but you didn’t mention toyota as a new team for 2002, they started from scratch
and I think honda will be running first than usf1, I see no future in the american team
Arthur954 said on 26th February 2009, 14:58
Whatever happens, I think one of the best investments USF1 can do is have a good simulator, both for the car and even more so for the drivers. These are costly, so maybe they can get an American company to buid one and in exchange give the whole process a lot of good press …..
More and more I think the future will involve simulators, and for the USF1 team in Charlotte, a little disconnected from the rest of the F1 world, this would make good sense.
Tim said on 26th February 2009, 15:31
I’m not sure I agree with the analysis that most of Toyota’s problems are due to being based outside of southern England. The reason for basing the team in Germany was to build upon the existing facilities of Toyota Team Europe, which had been successful in world rallying, rather than set up something from scratch.
Having a base in southern England isn’t exactly a prerequisite for F1 success – neither Ferrari or BMW Sauber are based in England and did quite well in 2008. In my view, Toyota’s problems stem from the ridgid application of management principles that work in a large manufacturing company but aren’t suited to F1.
Michael Andretti? Not really applicable – Andretti clearly suffered by living on a different continent to McLaren, but surely USF1 would be based in a single place? Especially if its drivers were American.
Engine supply – the manufacturer teams have agreed in principle to provide cheap customer engines to other teams. Alternatively, the FIA standard engine is due to be ready for 2010 and several teams have apparently expressed an interest. (FYI – Williams are not currently beating Toyota with their own engines (Toyota were fifth in 2008, Williams were eighth).)
Don’t get me wrong, USF1 has a mountain to climb to create a brand new team based in a part of the world with no background to speak of in modern F1. The lack of experienced F1 personnel in Carolina will be an issue, although relocating in an English speaking environment may be more attractive to some than Switzerland or Italy. Getting last minute parts to races will also be more difficult but nothing a private jet on standby or a facility in Spain couldn’t solve.
The biggest issue, surely, has to be finding American drivers of sufficient quality to compete in F1.
YeaMon said on 26th February 2009, 16:04
themark- “who won a few more races than her” (bordais and Danica)
Danica didn’t even win a race before Bordais’ F1 career began. Danica can barely compete in IRL, and makes way too many mental mistakes.
dmw said on 26th February 2009, 16:14
The logistics argument is not garbage. Its not about flight time and shipping costs, or bashing NC technical resources, its about leveraging commercial and intellectual infrastructure. There is a reason why tech companies set up shop in greater San Francisco and why a race car builder goes to England. When you are starting from scratch, capital has to go to the talent, it has to be in the line-of-sight of investors, it must be able to host suppliers’ staff for secondments without making them move their families. It must become part of the industry community. This is why setting up shop in NC is daft.