What if…. There was no WDC? (16 posts)

  • Profile picture of Polishboy808 Polishboy808 said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    Think about what would happen if there was no WDC. Each team would put equal amount of effort into both of their cars, with an emphasis on car development, as well as driver skill. Im quite sure that before 1980 (or somewhere around that time) the WRC had no WDC, and it was just a Manufacturers Championship. In a sport like F1, to make this possible, huge spending cuts would have to be made to closely even out the field, but what if 3 teams where dead even? With the car being the key point here, engineers and designers would push as hard as they can to create innovative solutions to problems, and maybe the FIA would allow things such as the F-Duct, or the EBD, or turbos, as creativity would be the key to success.

    I know it will never happen but I wanted to hear your opinions on this idea.

  • Profile picture of Icthyes Icthyes said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    It’s strange because even people who support a team rather than a driver still think it’s more important to win the Drivers’ Championship.

    I doubt it would open up innovation or anything, because there are other reasons for their limitation.

    It would certainly be interesting. It fits in with my thread about what effect the amount of races – and the championship – was having on our appreciation of the achievement of winning a race. Of course the focus would then be on the WCC, so it’s not quite the same. But an interesting scenario nonetheless. We all know it’s 75% the car anyway, after all.

  • Profile picture of LL Jehto LL Jehto said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    what would be the point of the season then?

  • Profile picture of Prisoner Monkeys Prisoner Monkeys said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    I think it’s a silly idea. A lot of fans support one particular driver (or two) rather than one team. I’m a Jenson Button fan, but that doesn’t automatically make me a McLaren fan. The only people who would benefit from such an arrangement would be the Ferrari fans.

  • Profile picture of Fixy Fixy said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    One positive aspect would be the greater effort put on “number two drivers” as they would have to at least equal their team mates, whilst now a team can concentrate on only one driver.

  • Profile picture of Scribe Scribe said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    85-90% car AT LEAST lololol. Cept in Monaco and Spa. Maybe when it rains. ;)

    Lol, not a great idea I’m afraid, but an interesting thought experiment.

  • Profile picture of daykind daykind said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    Yeah, I’m an Alonso fan but not a real Ferrari fan. And as said earlier, what would be the point in Formula One?

  • Profile picture of Mads Mads said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    Then there would be the unofficial WDC… If you removed the point table for the drivers we would all still calculate how many points each driver scored and we would crown him the champions, just without the money, the sponsorships and the big parties, but it would still be there.
    Anyway the only point of removing it would be to stop teams from only backing one driver, but the teams that have the money brings updates for both drivers on the same time, or only so one driver tests it and then they both run the old spec component while they tweak the new one.
    For most of the teams the WCC is the most important, because it is for the team, and because that is where you get the real money. The team don’t earn much by having their driver crowned champion compared to what they get when they get crowned champion in WCC.
    And for most people it would make F1 more boring. Yes i support a specific team, but what i am mostly interested in is the WDC, and i think 80% of all F1 fans feel that way.
    I don’t think the problem with one driver being backed more then the other is such a problem that we should remove one of the key components to F1.

  • Profile picture of LL Jehto LL Jehto said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    mads:”The team don’t earn much by having their driver crowned champion compared to what they get when they get crowned champion in WCC.”
    Are you sure about this? What’s the differencial? Double? Ten times?

  • Profile picture of moshbeard moshbeard said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    It’s mentioned fairly regularly on TV coverage that the WCC is where the big money is and for manufacturer teams like Ferrari and Mclaren it’s where the real glory is too.

  • Profile picture of Icthyes Icthyes said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    I’m not sure about that. I’d say the WCC was for the money and the WDC for the glory.

  • Profile picture of Mads Mads said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    @Icthyes Well Ferrari at least used the 16 WCC they have won over the years as a part of the name for one of their road cars a few years back, so i think it means quite a lot to them. But then okay they have “only” won 15 WDC, so of cause they are going with the bigger number.
    I don’t know, but i think you are right, at least the WDC is what is mentioned mostly in the non-motorsport news media, so i guess commercial wise it is probably better to win the WDC then the WCC.

  • Profile picture of LL Jehto LL Jehto said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    it would be nice to know what is the reality about this issue. All we had so far is rumours or mentions on TV that WCC is where the big money is… How much bigger?

  • Profile picture of rfs rfs said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    If the driver’s championship was abolished, F1′s TV ratings would take a huge nosedive. The popularity of F1 in any particular country depends on the success of drivers from that country. For example, Germany and Spain didn’t care for F1 before Schumacher and Alonso started winning. But once they did, it became big news in those countries and F1 ratings soared. Similar things have happened in England with Mansell-mania and then Hamilton-mania.

    Also, aside from Ferrari, most fans don’t really care about the teams. Manufacturers come and go as their executives see fit. And teams are bought and sold and change their identities at a businessman’s whim.

  • Profile picture of craig-o craig-o said 1 year, 11 months ago:

    It wouldn’t work. With all the constant limitations on the cars it will very quickly become farcical. And agree with rfs, the TV ratings would plummet

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