Marussia gone; official

[Doc Austin]

I now strongly hope FI goes under or someone burns down their factory.

Then we would be down to 16 cars. How would that help the sport?

[CNR]

I HOPE THIS IS THE ONLY REASON
http://www.pitpass.com/52789/Ecclest...cars-to-rivals
""They would supply a third car to someone else so if, for example, Sauber disappeared, a team could do a deal with Sauber. Ferrari could say, 'we will give you a car, all that goes with it, and we want you to put this sponsor on it. You have your own sponsors but we want you to include this one as well and we want you to take this driver'. The team wouldn't have to go under then would they? If Red Bull decided they would give a car to Caterham for example that could solve their problem."

If several teams go under it would trigger the need for the remaining ones to supply third cars to them. Last month Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff said "there's a regulation which says if the grid drops below 20 cars, so 19 cars, then there is a certain mechanism which would trigger certain teams to fill in." The reason for this is contained in the contracts with race promoters which state that F1 "shall use its reasonable endeavours to ensure... that at least sixteen cars participate in the Event ."
"

[AndyL]

This might be the end after all: F1 Strategy Group rejects bid by Marussia to keep 2014 car.
Maybe it's really the teams that want to run three cars, because with this vote they are one step closer.

It's a shame the report on that site doesn't provide any insights into the working of the strategy group. Like would this have been a majority vote, or could it have been a veto by a single team who want to run 3 cars?

[Robinho]

It's a shame the report on that site doesn't provide any insights into the working of the strategy group. Like would this have been a majority vote, or could it have been a veto by a single team who want to run 3 cars?

It had to be unanimous, the only team who voted against marussia being able to use a '14 car was Force India

[zako85]

Well, the number one problem with F1 is that F1 is being run by an extremely short sighted E and other commercial interests. For them F1 is not a sport, but a money making machine. E does not care what happens to F1 in ten or twenty years (he will be dead then). He wants to extract as much as he can right now.

The number two problem is that the commercial rights to F1 are not owned by the teams. Ever wonder why the new teams had little chance to succeed? Ever wonder why all of F1's teams get only half of F1's TV rights income while the rest goes into the pockets of fatcats like E, CVC, and other self-entitled suits? When I think about it, I always start thinking that it would have been great if F1 teams broke away from E and setup a new championship.

And last problem is the runaway costs. The horrendous price of the new (2014- spec) engines is only a tip of the iceberg. The real problem is that everyone who is doing business with F1 thinks that F1 teams can print their own money. The FIA, the track owners, the tire manufacturers, the engine suppliers, fuel supply. etc. As a result, a team with a budget of 100 millions USD (enough to fund the entire IndyCar grid for a season) can barely afford to build a passable chassis that barely falls within the 107 percent rule and then maybe hire a couple of pay drivers.

[AndyL]

http://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2015/0...al-teams-veto/

Sounds like it was all about money. Marussia's share of the TV revenues including their prize money for beating Sauber and Caterham will be shared between the remaining teams. I guess Force India really need the extra cash.

[Doc Austin]

This just makes me wonder how bad it will have to get before all of these people realize something has to be done to keep the teams healthy.

How long will the public remain convinced F1 is the pinnacle if only eight teams can be bothered to even show up? Every year we hear how bad things are at Indianapolis, but they can still scrape 33 cars together.

As I have documented earlier on this thread, Force India reportedly can't even pay for it's own tubs, but now they are allowed to vote another team off the grid? How stupid will they all look if Force India can't answer the bell either?

[truefan72]

This just makes me wonder how bad it will have to get before all of these people realize something has to be done to keep the teams healthy.

How long will the public remain convinced F1 is the pinnacle if only eight teams can be bothered to even show up? Every year we hear how bad things are at Indianapolis, but they can still scrape 33 cars together.

As I have documented earlier on this thread, Force India reportedly can't even pay for it's own tubs, but now they are allowed to vote another team off the grid? How stupid will they all look if Force India can't answer the bell either?

well said.
it is ridiculous. all these teams are shortsighted and think of themselves only, even to the detriment of the sport.
having such a small grid is an embarrassment to the sport and given a chance to correct that problem, they of course chose to make it worse.
at the end of the day, i still assign the majority of the blame to the FIA and Max Mosley who screwed up the process in such a way that he bribed 3 financially unsound teams to enter the sport, while rejecting real buds that would have been around today. ohm, and a 4th "USF1" that didn't even make the grid.
FI teams and the FIA have already killed the golden goose, now they are trying to bury it

[Doc Austin]

While they still have a brand, I think F1 needs to salvage it's image. It is downright embarrassing they can't scrape 20 cars together, especially when those cars already exist! When Indianapolis looks like they might not make 33, they will pull an old sled or two out of the museum, just so they don't embarrass themselves to the point no one cars any more.

F1 let the costs get so out of control that only manufacturer backed teams can afford to do it. Williams is the only independent team that doesn't seem to be facing some sort of financial crisis, but remember that before Martini they were forced to put up with Maldocrashdo (or is that Shuntanaldo?).

Of the rest, count up the ride buyers and that will tell you who is and isn't in money trouble. This means that you have to take Sauber and Lotus out of the picture when it comes to healthy teams, so who is left? Force India? Are you kidding?

Outside of Williams, the only comfortably solvent team not manufacturer supported is Red Bull, but they burn money like it's nothing just because they have it....just beause that is what they do, just for the pure hell of it. What happens when Mateschitz has had enough? If red Bull stops winning, how long will he keep pouring money in to run four cars? Where would the sport be without him? Is he going to live forever? Will his heirs have the same passion for lighting cigars will million dollar bills?

The rest are Ferrari (Fiat), Mercedes (Mercedes) and McLaren (Honda). And, what the hell, let's throw Torro Rosso in there too because they are part of the bottomless pit of Red Bull money.

Who is left? Is Lotus solvent? How About Force India?

Basically you have the manufacturers with their pet teams, and the grid filling scubs that they could care less about. Right now we are to the point Sportscars has found themselves in so often..... at the mercy of fickle manufacturers who can come and go whenever it suits them, and most of the time they go when it hurts the sport the most. Take a look at how many times sportscar racing has been decimated because manufacturers left.

In the end the answer is going to be simplier cars that more teams can afford to race, and an independent engine supplier that can sell the teams a power plant that gives them a chance, like in the old Cosworth days.

The answer is not, and never will be, excluding teams when you are already down to an embarrassing number.

Yeah, 18 cars. How great will that be when we lose another team?

[Jag_Warrior]

http://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2015/0...al-teams-veto/

Sounds like it was all about money. Marussia's share of the TV revenues including their prize money for beating Sauber and Caterham will be shared between the remaining teams. I guess Force India really need the extra cash.

From the old days, this was called "winning ugly". But when you need the money (as it sounds like Force India does), you do what ya need to do. And putting a bullet in Manor put more money in Force India's pocket.