Should The Drivers Take Part For UK?

[cynisca]

To all who has the nationality of the United Kingdom. In the Formula One the drivers from UK take part for UK but what do you think if the drivers take part for England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland?

Some stats about UK drivers in the Formula One:
UK drivers took part at 789 Grand Prixs.
UK drivers scored 4,558.28 points.
UK drivers won 201 races.
UK drivers led 383 races.
UK drivers drove 184 fastest laps.
UK drivers had 196 pole positions.
UK drivers won 13 world titles.
It has been 155 drivers who took part at the Formula One.
There has never been a season without UK drivers.

[Sonic]

No I want British drivers to stay just that......British.

Although ITV always used to say "Scot David Coulthard" when he had lost, and "British Driver David Coulthard" when he was winning

[Brown, Jon Brow]

No I want British drivers to stay just that......British.

Although ITV always used to say "Scot David Coulthard" when he had lost, and "British Driver David Coulthard" when he was winning

Ahhh that old nut shell. That has never happened really, has it?

[Rusty Spanner]

I haven't got the slightest interest in which country a driver or team represents. Its just not important to me.
Personally I feel the playing of the national anthems for the winning driver and team seems just a little out of place. The sport is a competition between individuals and teams not countries. The drivers race to win for themselves not their country and teams are so multinational in their workforce it doesn't seem an appropriate fit for them either.

[Mark]

I haven't got the slightest interest in which country a driver or team represents. Its just not important to me.
Personally I feel the playing of the national anthems for the winning driver and team seems just a little out of place. The sport is a competition between individuals and teams not countries. The drivers race to win for themselves not their country and teams are so multinational in their workforce it doesn't seem an appropriate fit for them either.

While I prefer to support a driver from my home country - Britain. I must admit you are right, drivers are individuals competing for works teams, Nationality is not a factor.

While I prefer to support a driver from my home country - Britain. I must admit you are right, drivers are individuals competing for works teams, Nationality is not a factor.

Technically, Britain is not a country. It's a collective of countries.

[V12]

I don't see why not, since the UK is technically the country we represent.

In football (and rugby) we are split up into the four "Home Nations" for historical purposes. If football was founded today as a worldwide sport I'm sure we would be represented as the UK but originally international football was basically home nation vs. home nation, long before FIFA came into being.

[big_sw2000]

Being Welsh, and a huge rugby fan.
I would like to stand on the podium listening to the Welsh national anthem.
But from a motorsport point of view, the English, or in this case the British Athem, always brings a tear to my eye, from Jaguar winning at Le Mans.
But im not going to stop supporting Jenson Button, just because hes the old enemy English.
As far as im consernd, we are Brits and lets surpport our home drivers. Even Hamiliton

[UltimateDanGTR]

I think the nationality thing is good, although the sport is about teams and individual drivers etc, national pride is a big factor in F1, as in any sport. I mean look at Ferrari, Seems to me very nationalistic pride from italy.

And I think drivers being classed as British, because we are the UNITED Kingdom, and we are all exactly that, United. Although I wouldnt object to playing the welsh or scottish national anthem if a welsh or scottish driver wins a race and wants it, they should be able to decide actually. same goes for northern island.

Just in a matter of interest, who was the last welsh F1 driver? No offence to my friends from Wales, but I cant seem to remember the last one.

[V12]

I think the nationality thing is good, although the sport is about teams and individual drivers etc, national pride is a big factor in F1, as in any sport. I mean look at Ferrari, Seems to me very nationalistic pride from italy.

I agree about nationality being a big thing and so it should be. While there's no place for outright nasty Xenophobia, and no place IMO for A1GP-style teams based solely around a nationality, getting behind a driver (or in some cases, team) from your own country is a perfectly natural thing to do. Back in the days of Hill vs Schumacher there was very much a sense of England vs Germany at times, and while sometimes it overstepped the mark (i seem to remember one time a Schumacher supporter's tour bus apparently got vandalised with swastikas at Silverstone), usually it was a bit light hearted, 1966 and all that

Just in a matter of interest, who was the last welsh F1 driver? No offence to my friends from Wales, but I cant seem to remember the last one.

Tom Pryce (1974-77) is certainly the most well known, to be honest I can't think of any others off the top of my head that have come since him, although I may be wrong.