2006-09-06 Wednesday

Thank you to the FIA for calling the Turkish GP organizers onto the carpet.  Hopefully there will be an apology by those officials and some more oversight on future podium visitors.  Once that happens, the matter is over in my books.

Michael is done.  No, not the Bild article.  It's from Ferrari insiders.  He apparently doesn't feel that he can take on Kimi, who's been signed since April.  Initially it was believed that Michael would leave end '06 only if he won the 2006 Championship and end '07 if he did not.  That's been revised.  Paraphrasing some at Ferrari: 'He's simply not as fast as he was.'

Soon it will be farewell to the statistically greatest F1 driver of them all.  No one will come close to that many victories again.  The FIA would never allow for that kind of dominance in future.

Kimi Ferrari memorabilia coming in January!

2006-08-27 Sunday

Congratulations to wonderful Felipe Massa on his convincing Pole and victory!  Many more to come, I hope.

But I am upset about something politically charged: Bernie Ecclestone's - and therefore F1's - political viewpoint, and how pathetic the standards for the Podium ceremoines are.

Mister Ecclestone and Pasquale Lattuneddu (his right-hand man) allowed for the leader of a contested part of Cyprus to present Felipe Massa his winner's trophy, ignoring a whole mess of UN resolutions, and hurting Greeks and Cypriots worldwide.

BBC story here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5292914.stm

Turkish newspaper link here:
http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/english/4991010.asp?gid=74

What the world read along the bottoms of their TV screens, courtesy Bernie:
Mehmet Ali Talat, President of the Northern Turkish Republic of Cyprus

The Northern Turkish Republic of Cyprus is recognized only by Turkey.  It's no different than having the leader of Hezbollah presenting the Iranian GP winner's trophy in Tehran and being called "President of South Lebanon".

Was there not another member of the Turkish Government proper available? No AAA-equivalent president? Politicians salivate presenting these trophies!

The presenter, Mehmet Ali Talat, is not even a Turkish citizen! He's a Cypriot Turk. Not that there's anything wrong with that but you'd think that maybe a national of that country should present the nation's GP trophy. Imagine if Fidel Castro presented the USGP trophy - a stretch I know but analogous.

Bernard Ecclestone's a smart guy. The production is his baby. He made the call to allow for politics to merge with business yet again. Will he pay? Probably not since the far larger Turkish Muslim population will appreciate his choice as much as the Greek and Cypriot populations will condemn it.

But since the President of Turkey brushed Bernie off, Ecclestone should have only allowed someone worthy of being in front of hundreds of millions of people. Instead, we all got a lesson in political theatre.

I know many won't care but Bernard Ecclestone should apologize for this one and set some standards for the podium ceremonies.

 

2006-08-17 Thursday

Jacques says dumb things a lot of the time, but not this time.

From The Age, Australia
( http://www.theage.com.au/news/motorsport/villeneuve-dumps-on-schumacher/2006/08/17/1155407955594.html )

In a report published in London's Guardian newspaper, Villeneuve said the German had nothing like the charisma or star quality of his championship-winning predecessors Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell and Alain Prost, and that fans will quickly forget Schumacher when he stops racing.

"He's a racer, but a pure racer, nothing but a racer and, because of that, I think the day he hangs up his helmet, people will just forget him," said Villeneuve, who left formula one after being replaced in the BMW-Sauber team by Robert Kubica.

"Senna, by contrast, will never be forgotten. Some of that is the James Dean factor, of course, because he was killed in action at a young age, but not all of it. I don't even think Michael will live on in people's memories as strong or as long as Prost has — certainly not as strong or as long as Mansell has. Those people attained a hero status that Michael never has and never will."

He may not be wrong about Schumi.  He's broken all the records but not against quality racers.  I've said time and time again that Senna, Prost, Mansell, Piquet, and Boutsen had each other to race, sometimes in fields of 33 cars!  How many are there today?  20.

The "James Dean" factor is, interestingly, verbatim what I was quoted on in a The Times of London article in 2004, by Ashling O'Connor:
( http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,12771-1081922,00.html )

The Senna industry today is closely regulated and growing every year. “Anything to do with Senna, of some class, sells,” J. P. Boutros, owner of Autosport.net, a dealer in Formula One race-used memorabilia and a Senna expert, said. There are T-shirts, model cars, Montegrappa pens, TAG Heuer watches, Cavaro bicycles, Bell helmets and Ducati motorcycles. Demand for the Senna brand — Driven to Perfection — is high. The limited-edition Ducatis (750 in total) costing $20,000 each sold out. Sid Mosca, who painted Senna’s racing helmets, sells about 180 replicas a year at $800 (about £440) apiece. Bell’s special-edition helmets cost up to $4,000.

There is a big difference between Senna and other sporting greats whose names spin the commercial wheel long after they have been lost to their fans. First, the Senna brand has been so carefully managed that there is little or no black market to speak of. This is partly because Senna fans are discerning and partly because Bernie Ecclestone, the Formula One promoter, comes down hard on knock-off merchants at grands prix.

Secondly, a specific proportion of the money generated on the back of his image is directly accountable to a significant social benefit. At least 5 per cent of the value of licensed products is paid in royalties to the Ayrton Senna Institute, a not-for-profit charity organisation. Extrapolating from the institute’s accounts, Boutros estimates that at least £74 million worth of official Senna merchandise is sold every year. A large source of the institute’s income is Senninha, the cartoon character that the late champion based on himself, and Senninha Baby, a spin-off. More than 350 branded products, from food and toys to books and lunch-boxes, are licensed and all the revenues go to the institute.

The institute also receives about 11 million Brazilian reals (about £2.1 million) a year from its corporate sponsors, which include Audi, Ericsson, Microsoft, Nokia and Banco do Brasil.

The other side of the Senna industry is the Formula One memorabilia market, in which the Brazilian reigns supreme.

Michael Schumacher’s helmets go for about $25,000 (about £14,000) each, whereas original Senna helmets range from $40,000 to $55,000. In 1998, Sotheby’s sold a rare Senna helmet for more than $62,000 (£37,000). Schumacher’s are worth less because of their greater availability — he wears up to three helmets per race weekend, while Senna wore only between six and eight a season.

He was also immortalised by an untimely death. “There is a James Dean phenomenon here,” Boutros said.

2006-07-11 Tuesday
No surprise here: Montoya got axed for the NASCAR move.  But anyway, it's the future of F1 I'm worred about.  Fernardo Alonso will rue the day he talked to Ron Dennis about moving to McLaren.

McLaren are not at all the team of Senna and Prost, nor of Mika and David. They lost morale and goodwill when they lost their team co-ordinator Jo Ramirez to retirement after many great years. Jo was a conduit between the driver(s) and Ron. If a driver had a complaint, Jo conveyed it to Ron in a manner Ron would accept. No one else I know of had that level of Ron's respect. Gordon Murray, probably. Kimi bi*ches to the media when the car fails... and that happens often. With the soft touch of Jo, Ron was always easier to be bossed by.

McLaren are officially the most surly outfit in the biz. The anti-Red Bull.  I've been to the factory a couple of times. An employee actually followed Jo and I around with a  wide mop of some sort to clean as we walked. The cleaner said that Ron always wants it that way. Micromanaging 101. I can appreciate cleanliness but come on! There's 'professional' and there's a possible OCD diagnosis.

Anyway, Fernando will absolutely hate it there come year two. He will be constantly reminded of the fact that he's getting paid to perform... even if it's not his fault the car is not working for him or anyone else. Pity poor Michael Andretti, ally-less in 1993 on Ayrton's team. If you don't have allies on the team high-up, you don't stand a chance. Ayrton, Alain, Mika and David had Jo Ramirez. Kimi is leaving, having been betrayed by Ron (otherwise, why would he take Fernando?). Juan is leaving for a myriad of reasons, not least of which is Ron (rarely have two people NOT been made for each other...).

Schumi has a whole team around him. Fernando has good ol' Flavio at Renault - his manager. What will FA have at McLaren? Bupkis. His move is a big mistake, and I'm a fan.
 

2006-07-10 Monday
Zizou: Why?
 

2006-07-09 Sunday
First off, it seems that Juan pulled a 'Fernando' in keeping his secret and not telling anyone about his Ganassi discussions. That says something about his feelings for many.

I've been fortunate enough to have seen a fair bit of Juan over the years. I was there when he and then-girlfriend Connie were house-hunting in Monaco in Feb 2001. We had lunch at the Cafe de Paris with friend Beppe and Juan was full of beans, talking about hurtling his new Ferrari 360 around in Miami at ungodly speeds the previous week. Triple digits onto an on-ramp with his dad in the car. When I asked about eventually driving for Ferrari. "No f**king way" although he tempered it in a follow-up with an "as long as Michael is there."

He wanted to move into Ayrton's old condo building on 1 av Princess Grace in Monaco, to feel the Senna aura. Well, he did move there and did win at Monaco. Several other top motorsport and Moto GP riders have lived there too.

I've known him since 1998. In CART he was always - in Juan's way - content. The smile was not contrived... if you got it. I had seen him in some subsequent races through his F1 career. At Imola 2004 he was not a happy guy. I was there for his last win for Williams at Brazil 2004.

He was happy to be leaving. Very noteworthy is the fact that Juan was paid no more than 1/2 what his teammate got in EVERY year of his F1 career. He most likely did not want to become what Jacques Villeneuve, fellow CART and Indy 500 Champion has become post-1997. No matter what, JPM won 7 races in the Ferrari era.

His life is his family.  He will call a spade a spade to your face.

At Montreal a few weeks ago, he was the loneliest guy in the paddock. Some watched the World Cup. Others talked in groups. No one cared for him. No one paid attention. That may have been a result of years of apathy on his part to many but apathy for others is about as common as selfishness in F1. JPM was persona non grata in the McLaren paddock hospitality area. Yes, he absolutely had his family: Father, son, pregnant wife. But, as many know, it's unusual for anyone in the paddock, having the family - especially a toddler - in tow.

From the beginning Juan differentiated himself from many driving in F1 by needing to be grounded by a wife and family in the paddock. Many believe that Sandra helped Michael Andretti fail at F1 in 1993, on Ron Dennis' team no less. Ayrton Senna displayed the emotional ruthlessness needed in modern F1 in divorcing his wife when he realized that he needed his full attention to racing. That may have been extreme but the results are well-known. Alonso currently follows the same belief: "Racing. That's all." In fact, he temporarily blocked out his own agent, Flavio Briatore, to do the McLaren deal for next year. Michael Schumacher is different (of course). He has a 2nd family, the entire Ferrari team. He's very special.

Montoya and McLaren? McLaren are the wrong team to find a 2nd family in. Ron Dennis is the antithesis of Jackie Stewart in the F1 paddock. Tennis, Dennis, it doesn't matter. Juan didn't choose the right team if he wanted to be loved. Ironically, Ferrari - the team he said he would not join - was the best fit for his latin blood. Oh, well.

Some fans are up in arms about his moving to NASCAR. Believe me, I'm hearing it from many people I know, too. It's a condemnation of F1. Like it needed condemning from Juan or his fans! It is what it is and it's a miracle that he won as many races as he did in the Ferrari era, especially Monaco. It's not about the fans when it comes to Juan Pablo Montoya. He's far from the only one in the paddock who cares not a jot about the fans. Juan really loves his fans, especially his native friends. That's behind his move as well.

Bottom Line: Montoya was not loved by F1, so why should he love it back?