I did not realise this, but apparently we are into the second day of Spock Obsession Awareness Week. Who knew there was such a thing, and was the Star Trek movie released to coincide with this? Anyway, here are some of the things we're discussing in the F1 world:
There was some excitement in the comments yesterday when some new Brawn GP merchandise was discovered. I'm pretty sure some things have already been ordered, which is excellent, but I am slightly annoyed that this luminous yellow thing doesn't seem to be going away any time soon.
Kovalainen is trying to remain positive, despite having a terrible car and enduring a pretty rubbish season so far. To quote: "I'm not dwelling on my sorrow." Um, overdramatic much? Five minutes ago Lewis was saying they just needed a few aero tweaks on the car and all would be well. Do we need a McLarenometer too?
Finally, as Steven pointed out in the comments yesterday, USGPE haven't actually decided whether they're going to enter F1 under the budget cap or not. Anderson has said that the figure is roughly what they were planning to spend anyway, so I can't see why they wouldn't, but it would certainly ruin Max's plans if they chose not to.
That'll do it for now. The edited version of this week's show is now available, if you want to have a listen. As per usual, I'll see you in the comments.
Yet another story emerged yesterday about a potential new team for Formula 1 and we all sighed just a little bit. Bassano raised a good point in the comments, suggesting that perhaps if he said he'd like to start an F1 team, that would also hit the headlines.
Naturally, Aguri Suzuki's past in F1, and the fact that he dramatically swore off the sport when he left in 2008, have made this a topic worth discussing, but the initial quote that sparked 1,000 articles was: "If it's physically possible I would certainly like to."
It might surprise you to know that I don't actually want to get into a discussion about the merits of creating fictional news from simple statements, but what this story did make me ponder was when we should actually start caring about a team. When do we start believing it really could happen?
The Light Bulb Moment
Just recently, a plethora of names have emerged suggesting they'd like to (re-)enter F1. Lola, Prodrive, USGPE, these are all companies who are supposedly considering snapping up a spot on the grid. GP2 teams might make the jump if the budget caps are right, and Super Aguri are going to make a glorious return and prove us all wrong. Or are they?
When a team owner/former F1 personality/rich person suggests that F1 might be fun, that doesn't seem to be the right time to sign up to the mailing list and purchase a baseball cap from the merchandise store. However, if Bassano says he's going to enter F1, then I whole-heartedly believe him.
I Can Draw Too
USGPE started out with just a name and a logo. The name changed, of course, but the logo seems to have stuck. They also are planning buildings, recruiting staff and designing cars. The talk of funding has been a little bit quiet, but perhaps that is because it doesn't need discussing. Donington wouldn't shut up about their capital plans and that hasn't worked out so well, just yet.
Perhaps it is different with Peter Windsor's team though. They are being created specifically for a Formula 1 entry, and thus you can tell the intent is genuine. What about Prodrive, where Dave Richards has plenty of other interests to keep him occupied? Will he just rock up one day and say the time is right? Or will we see the gradual progression of logo and car and sponsors?
Sign Me Up
For me, a team becomes real when it has an F1 entry secured and is testing out drivers. None of this: "we'd love to get Danica in the car." I want to see helmets on, laps completed, contracts signed. The FIA are increasing the number of teams to 13 next year, so they clearly believe interest is going to be raised. As yet, I haven't got as much faith as Mr Mosley. This month, the teams have to sign up if they want to get involved, and I can't believe that any of the names we have heard so far are ready to jump on board the F1 bus and get going. F1 is a sport of looking far into the future (although recent regulation changes would have you believe otherwise) and this just feels like too short notice.
Perhaps even being on the grid isn't enough though. Super Aguri's future was never really secure, even when they were trailing each Grand Prix. Maybe we should look to teams to start winning before we begin to put any faith in them sticking around. The unexpected will always happen, but once a team gets a taste of the champagne, it must make them more keen to stick around.
How do you feel about new team rumours? Any of them particularly grab your attention? Do you think Prodrive (or Aston Martin as they may be called) would be ready to sign on the dotted line? Are USGPE's car designs going as well as their logos? When should we really start to put our necks on the line and switch allegiance to a new team?
With the fallout from McLaren's latest indiscretion still reverberating around Formula 1, guest writer Jeremy takes a look at the story from a different angle.
Maybe I'm just naive, but I found the recent news of Team Vodafone McLaren Mercedes misleading a stewards enquiry quite outrageous and disappointing. What shocked me even more, was the revelation on Australian TV during an interview with Peter Windsor, that he would have "tried to cover it up in front of the stewards" if he was in the same situation as McLaren's Sporting Director, Dave Ryan.
During the lead up to the 2009 Malaysian Grand Prix, Peter Windsor publicly discussed that, having previously been a Team Manager with Williams, if he was in Dave Ryan's shoes, he likely would have taken the same course of action. In his own words:
We're talking about the sort of thing that goes on in the stewards office, probably every day of the year and has been going on for the past 50 years at all motor racing events around the world.
If I put myself in Davey Ryan's shoes, I probably would've done the same thing.
Perhaps Mr Windsor can put this information on the website for his own Formula 1 team - USGPE. I'm sure that would be a great tactic for generating sponsorship. While I say that sarcastically, I'm actually wondering if that statement could in fact be correct.
What do you think, is Peter right and has the latest McLaren scandal been blown out of all proportion? Does this sort of thing happen every day in motor sport, or are USGPE off to a bad start before they even enter F1?
This article was originally written for BellaOnline, but is republished here for posterity.
USF1 has only been in existence for a couple of weeks and has already fallen foul of Bernie Ecclestone. The FOM boss has forced the team to change their name, as he doesn't like them using "F1" in their title. Although Bernie doesn't own the rights to the trademark F1 (and he has tried to claim it several times), he has the power to sway the teams to do as he asks.
We first knew about this when the USF1 website went down, and fans were worried that the team, hoping to enter F1 in 2010, had hit a glitch before they'd even begun. However, the site redirected to USGPE.com, and this turns out to be the new name of the team: US Grand Prix Engineering.
Aside from the fact that it's not as catchy a name, this seems to be just a spiteful act from Bernie. He must have known the name of the team before they released it to the public, as co-owner Peter Windsor has said he approached Ecclestone way back in 2003 with the idea.
If he had asked them to change it beforehand, it would have saved a lot of confusion for fans. I have already got USF1 stuck in my head, and having to rethink it as USGPE isn't easy. No doubt when the logo and car appears, and we start using it more often, it will be fine, but this is not a good example of brand awareness.
Peter Windsor confirmed that the setback wouldn't hold them up too much, and that a new logo would be on the way as soon as possible. However, he also said that the USF1 site was never going to be a permanent domain for them, and that they had considered USGPE as a name anyway, as a mark of respect to the older teams.
Williams has been known as Williams Grand Prix Engineering, and many other teams, both past and present, have similar names. The interesting thing is that Williams is currently known as AT&T Williams F1, which appears to be allowed because they are in the championship already, and on the entry list.
Bernie isn't so kind to Force India though, having asked them to change their logo as when shortened to FI, it looked too much like F1. The team have agreed to do this, but it is just another example of how Bernie exercises his power over the grid.
