Breakaway series is go!

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/76310
Force India waiting on F1 future

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Force India boss Vijay Mallya has suggested his team is undecided on its future in Formula 1 following FOTA's decision to create a breakaway championship.
Force India and Williams have been the only two current teams who submitted unconditional entries for the 2010 championship.
However, FOTA announced on Thursday night that, after failing to reach a deal with the FIA, will launch its own series with its eight member squads.
Mallya said he was sad that it was not possible to reach a compromise deal, and suggested his team will consider its options following this weekend's events.
"We have been completely open and transparent with FOTA," said Mallya in a statement.

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Originally Posted by ArrowsFA1

He mentions "companies, television contractors" but says "any of our contracted people" and there are quite a few of those!

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FOTA can go to anyone they like and GreedyBernie can do squat about it. Afterall, those companies can not be forced to just show or sponsor F1

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Originally Posted by SteveMcQueen

It is close to impossible to pull off a series with that sort of professionalism in mind in barely 10 months time, just forget it.

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Why? Could you expand on why you think it is impossible, because I dont see it like that at all.

Three things are running through my head now and I'd like to know what you guys think of it all:

1. TV Coverage - any TV company that runs F1 now will be blocked from showing the new breakaway series. Thats ok in some European countries and the USA that has millions of TV stations, but what about the rest. For example South Africa would lose out totally because its not soccer so ETV won't be interested and the SABC don't have the finances to buy the coverage. Supersport are the current F1 coverage people and they won't be able to cover the series. Now repeat that in a lot of countries, no doubt, and your fan base is instantly smaller. Look at how bad the worldwide coverage of A1GP is.

2. Any FIA sanctioned circuit will be blocked from hosting these races, which leaves where exactly to race? Forget Silverstone, etc. No circuit can survive on the takings from 1 race weekend in a year so they have to run smaller events as well, and if they can't run FIA events, who do they run? So no circuit will take the series with that hanging over their heads.

3. Any driver taking part in the series will be banned (possibly for life, like what happened with the cricket guys playing that non-ICC santioned Indian cricket league) from taking part in any FIA sanctioned event - so forget the likes of Bourdais racing at Le Mans for example. Can these drivers seriously depend on being in this racing series long enough to make enough money to not worry about being banned from racing afterwards?

1. i'd be surprised if the current TV contracts exclude the companies from showing rival series - after all when the contracts were written they were no natural rival series, and they can't retrospectively amend the contracts now.

the contract also probably has some requirement for FOM to provvide the premier F1 world championship racing consisting of a minimum 18 cars and some specific venues - when the FIA/FOM championship faiols to provide this the TV guys will jump anyway.

2. as stated previously any european track is free to run any event, the FIA cannot stop them.

outside of Europe i'm not so sure of the details, but the US and Canada run under their own governance for the tracks, and the Asian countries have plenty of domestic series running on their (under used) FIA sanction circuits.

3. FIA don't run Le Mans for a start, its the ACO in France.

the FIA don't have the power in this struggle, i think there would be plenty of tracks available and the drivers will go with the teams wherever they see the pinnacle championship.

i share some of your concerns on TV coverage, but the FOTA release did mention about availability on Free to Air TV

just a thought - GP2 is Bernies yeah, and races on the F1 support bill.

MAx has managed to create F2 (running on WTCC bill), with a Williams designed chassis.

Max will move F2 to GP2's spot, beneath the near spec (2 definite teams with cars, 2 new entrants and a coiuple of reserves who may or may not still want to play when Max gets to them) all cosworth F1.

Bernie takes FOM to GP1, with GP2 as the support series?

F1 and F2 die a slow death, but noone notices, hopefully Williams get out and come to play with the proper teams and GP1 continues where the current F1 left off - we can hope?

Local governing bodies are free to run series however they like within their own borders, so NASCAR in America, ACO in France, BTCC in the UK, can act as they like with no input from the FIA.

FIA only has jurisdiction when a championship is being run internationally.

so drivers can go anywhere outside GP1 except the FIA series (i can't believe the FIA would be so stupid to exclude the drivers anyway), and the European circuits and non-euro, non FIA circuits could take GP1

Monaco is like the Indy version of of F1,

who will be there, FOTA or bernei?
If monaco goes FOTA, bernie's circus is kaput

If it does not, then the whole split thing will go kaput

Besides I bet money there are all these european anti-trust laws that ought to take care of the retialiation

If FOTA gets Monaco, Spa, Monza, SILVERSTONE and THE USA!!!!!!
Then it will be going good---add in regs that ensure competitive engines (Merceded or whoever)for all those "other new" entries, and they will follow with the big boys

Nothing mandates that the FIA has exclusive jurisdiction over international racing, it is merely a sanctioning body among others

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Originally Posted by Garry Walker

Why? Could you expand on why you think it is impossible, because I dont see it like that at all.

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They have no arguments. all they say it's impossible! It's like the guy this morning on the BBC broadcast, who was repeating that it's impossible to achieve what Bernie and Max achieved, but he never had an effin' argument to support his butt kissing.

When I see people believe that manufacturers, that existed and prospered for more than half a century and who between them are one of the strongest groups on Earth, can't put together a calender of 10-15 races and sign a few TV broadcasting contracts, I just realize how many idiots live in this world!
And that somehow explains why some of us have to work twice as hard to making things advance while these mules are keeping pulling in the wrong direction.