Comments on: BMW pick GT racing and WTCC over F1

By: Miatabeau

Miatabeau — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 19:13:12 +0000

BMW is no longer in F1 because they lacked results, pure & simple. They made a strategic mistake while leading the championship after Canada in 08 to focus on the 09 car when they could have won it all. They would still be there especially with smaller budgets going forward.

By: Gman

Gman — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 04:42:05 +0000

I can agree that the ALMS Series is not a widespread sport here in America, but it dose have a dedicated following of motorsport fans, and races at many venues (Laguna Seca, Road America) than many F1 fans would like to see a race at. It will probably wind up being an effective and cost-effecient investment for BMW.

I applaud Dr. Mario for standing up for a strong F1 presence in the USA during his times as boss at BMW. Nick Fry was always right there with him when working with Honda- now that he’s back in the employment of a car company with major U.S. interests, let’s see if he joins Martin Whitmarsh in championing a new U.S. race.

By: Gman

Gman — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 04:38:38 +0000

HG, I agree with you 100%. As an American who wants F1 to have a strong presence here, your remarks are fantastic!

I will be the frist to admit that F1 will never be as big here as NASCAR, or the domestic sorts leagues. But if the various powerbrokers in F1 would simply make a decent investment in marketing and promotion in the USA, they could develop a great brand here that would get them a good bit of publicity, and do a great dela for their business plans.

A few kind words from Bernie would also be a great help, but that’s probably too much to ask…;)

By: Gman

Gman — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 04:35:15 +0000

Ehhh….the type of customer BMW targets, and the companies BMW competes with for sales in the USA, really aren’t present at many NASCAR races Than again, perhaps the same could be said about the WTCC from what Keith says….

By: HG

HG — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 03:35:54 +0000

true, but they should have been there long before the recent scandals

By: Jess

Jess — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 15:56:18 +0000

AMLS is a fun series to watch and they get a lot of fans att he race. TV however is limited to mostly nextday tape delays. In the GT2 Series they should do quite well. Maybe they will try to develop a P1 in the future.

By: Pedro Candeias

Pedro Candeias — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 11:07:59 +0000

The USA represents BMW’s largest market. It only makes sense they expand their presence in racing series that will promote their road going cars.

Bingo. Ferrari is pretty much the only supercar maker in F1 at the moment, and certainly the only constructor in a position to market (watered-down versions of) their single seater’s technologies.

Manufacturers like BMW or Renault have a harder time extracting value. They need wins and championships, and even then the return is slim. So yes, BMW is wise to focus on series that run cars you can actually buy.

By: Pedro Candeias

Pedro Candeias — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 10:46:31 +0000

F1 needs a big marketing effort if it wants to really grab a hold of the US. But since its main asset is the brand itself, F1 must be very careful about admitting it still needs promotion. Given the current situation of the sport, with all the scandals and fan dissatisfaction, such a move could be seen as a sign of weakness and actually lose the brand some value. Bernie doesn’t want that, and I suppose neither do any stakeholders (investors, sponsors, teams and even ourselves).

By: HG

HG — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 07:50:03 +0000

F1 should be in USA. Everyone who is anyone who sells something, from music to cars, wants to crack the US market. Yes the world is becoming increasingly multi-polar in terms of economic, an other, might- but the USA is still such a massive market, it should have been sorted out years ago for F1.

By: CLK GTR

CLK GTR — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 05:46:18 +0000

BMW should enter NASCAR if they want even more exposure in their #1 market