Formula 1, no personalities, no romance - has the fun formula gone?

I have to say that the stock answers I hear from the drivers and teams irritate the living daylights outta me....

BUT

Ultimately it's abt the cars and the racing, and (apart from a few illogical rule changes) those are raw as ever.

Not having (openly) womanising, boozing drivers actually makes it a more pleasant environment.... tho hearing abt any 'exploits' doesn't make a difference.Who cares what the drivers do when they're off track right?

I think that 'Midnightjester' is missing the point.

Sure, F1 is run by a bunch of paranoid control freaks, (two of whom are due to retire soon) but that does not take away the adrenaline rush you get from watching it.

when I look back at the pleasure and enjoyment I got from watching Kimi in his final qualifying run, (last Sat) after 5 months of F1 withdrawal, I have to say that (for me at least)  "F1 IS NOT DULL".

Who cares what the drivers do when they're off track right?

Exactly, $deezee$.

It's when they are off the left of the track is where the real concerns are.

LOL

And I agree andro.... even just watching the practice sessions made me feel 'alive' and giddy with delight!

Well have a look at this then.

Ferrari cars take to thje streets of some of the worlds most famous cities, in this Shell commercial. (don't forget to turn up your sound)

oooohhhhh..... that's a great ad!

It won't be dull if we get a F1 circuit on the Gold Coast . (or between GC and Bris).

No!!! I don't want it on the Gold Coast!

They already have Indy500 

Ok then, you can have Indy.

I imagine that if this goes ahead, (State Govt still haven't given green light) the Indy will move to the new venue. (DOn't really care what happens to indy, really)

I do not think it dull at all!  In general I am not much for racing, however, I will sit and watch F1 whenever I get a chance.  There is something very "sexy" about it to me.  Maybe it's just the exotic locations, or the dreamy drivers with their delicious accents.. lol

Being from the "drinking town with a racing problem", I have a soft spot for Indy as well   (kinda like that money it brings to the local economy each year, lol)

It's the cars.... oh the cars.... and the sound! Oh.... the sound....  (having goodlooking drivers doesn't hurt.... except for the fact that they have their faces hidden for most of the telecast)

Indy.... I can watch it, but I don't find it as exciting as other events 

And the smell, oh the smell of racing fuel.
As soon as F1 comes on the TV I fancy I can smell the sweet exhaust fumes of racing fuel.

I think we should have female F1 drivers, then I could get excited about good looking drivers as well. 

Oh yeah..... smell of fuel....

*sniff*

*faints*

I wonder what it smells like.... I'm sure I'd like it.... I love the smell of petrol etc 

Female F1 drivers? Don't you guys already have the umbrella holders??

No fair 

Ah yes, the Pit Lane Babes.

the least they (F1) could do is offer us females 'Pit Stop Hunks'..... forget safety clothing, it's over-rated

Some of the babes at Barcelona!!!!!!




And last of all Mrs Raikonnen.

That's all of the Barcelona babes.

So you see, F1 is not dull at all.

All the ladies get is this

hahahaha, and Kimi, and Webby, and DC, et al.

But like De said... all we get to see is some guy in his coveralls.. sometimes they will raise the visor, and we can see the eyes.. but, other than that, it's not a whole lota sexy.. to look at!

eggactly!

Oh yeah, what about this.........

Filipe Massa and Kimi Raikonnen. (this week in Monaco).

More pics of Monaco tomorrow.

Notice the shirts they have on

The most boring thing for me is no overtaking... with aerodynamics so high-tech it's no longer about the daring nad overtaking, but rather the tech. Cars are too slow when it comes to the dirty air.

A friend of mine that is a huge F1 fan mentioned that new cars are being developed for use in 2 years.  These cars will "charge" during regular driving, and create a "pool" of energy for use during passing.  F1 is fixing to get a whole lot more exciting...hehe

I agree.... I look forward most to overtaking and one on one challenges. That is what  want from every race, regardless of who wins or leads the championship

yep, @ Gracey, sounds very cool.

But I guess overtaking and constant challenging is why I enjoy MotoGP a lot as well. 

Oh yeah, MotoGP is right up there in the excitement stakes...

MotoGP has less overtaking....  Most of the time, if you see a breakaway from first place, he's gone and won the race lol.  This doesn't happen all the time, but from all the races I have watched, I'd say that within the first 5 laps you can tell who the winner is going to be at least 70% of the time.

I love Formula 1 though, I am planning on going to the US Grand Prix for 2008 maybe.

Nah.... MotoGP is usually a closer race than F1.... even if one guy has taken off and will win, there are always good scraps down the field

GT & WTCC some of the best stuff though for racing battles though, love to see them banging around

I don't care really, because anything and everything is better than that Nascar crap we are stuck with here in the USA.

HAHAHAHAHAHA
You have a point there

Well at least we agree on that

Quick, let's hide before the NASCAR fans get here

Sticks out chest, acting all manly....

Nascar fans, you have no idea what real racing is!!!!!

*Hides behind dekrazee* It was her fault! 

F1 Forever!! 

@ JMowery - Why you wittle.....
hehehe

MotoGP is a zillion times better than F1. Last season was probably a little dull because the Ducati was very dominant, but this year Honda and Yamaha are right on the pace again. And Rossi... well pre 800cc he would do more overtaking in one race than the average F1 driver manages in 2 seasons. Shame they changed the engine size and plugged in TRC, before that it was 2 zillion times better than F1.

Yeah, but even with the engine size, it is pretty good.

I watch the races, but they're a bit too short!

I watch Moto GP as well, but better than F1 it certainly aint and never will be....

Everyone is entitled to their opinion. And I wont hold it against you that yours is completely wrong.

At the very  least, F1 has scandals.... what abt MotoGP? hmmm?

So F1's selling point is its scandals... as opposed to it's racing? I think I'll stick with the exciting racing over Max Mosley's sex life tyvm.

Oh, the racing is still exciting....

Actually, I'd say MotoGP and F1 are on par with racing quality

Er, everyone is entitled to their opinion. And I won't hold it against you that yours is completely wrong.

The most exciting thing that happened at Monte Carlo was Kimi shunting the Force India car... closely followed by Hamilton's prang. F1 delivers big on hype, but not in action. MotoGP does the opposite.

No way! Crashes aren't the exciting bit! The rest of the race is!

Kubica's drive for one. And Sutil kept it interesting.

It most definitely wasn't one of those regular ho-hum races - which mind you, MotoGP has as well

Ho-hum is 80-20 in F1... 20-80 in MotoGP. I'm completely impartial and my opinion is totally objective. Trust me. MotoGP is much better.

Btw, and oddly enough I was having a similar disagreement on the 'Other Sports' forum at Boxrec. But that was about NASCAR being the worlds premier motorsport. They were wrong too.

Oh, that I agree with.... NASCAR is slightly less exciting than me taking a sharp corner in 3rd gear

Comparing NASCAR with F1 is like comparing the Wright Bros plane with a FA18 jet fighter.

hehehe yeah

The contention was that since NASCAR attracts huge crowds and uses less technology it is 'better'.

I quote -- " Take a look at NASCAR's attendance for the last 20 years and compare that to any other form of racing. Numbers and money dont lie. F-1 is losing drivers to NASCAR as well as the IRL and not to mention manufacturers. NASCAR is the premier motor sport of the world."

The drivers F1 (apparently) 'lost' to NASCAR were Montoya, Villeneuve and Patrick Carpentier. I did try and explain they were either shit or hasbeens, but alas I got called a hater. Turns out that the average weekend attendances for NASCAR and MotoGP were slightly in favour of two wheels... which didn't go down well either.

Heh.... they can be forgiven for going to Nascar races.... they don't have anything else!

Well, there's Indy.... but you get the point

me taking a sharp corner in 3rd gear

I can take 90 degree bends in 4th. If fact, my car can corner faster than it straight lines. It must be the angular momentum kicking in ...

LOL!!

Most exciting thing abt last night's race - Rossi's helmet

LOL! He's such a character...

I think the most exciting part of F1 these days is the qualifying.  The recent races (with the exception of Monaco) have been more or less a procession from start to end with very little overtaking between the front runners.

Although the qualifying doesn't feature overtaking either at least it is broken up into segments so you get 3 winners (or sorts) over the course of the hour it runs for.  Perhaps it would be better for F1 to have several shorter races each weekend a bit like how the V8 Supercar races are structured?

Actually, I think quali has become boring.... it used to be exciting maybe 2 years ago. Was even fun watching just Live Timing in those days!

Actually I still watch live timing these days, (usually final quali only) depending on when the TV stations will be showing it.

I believe that to fully appreciate F1 racing, you need some understanding (like most sports) of exactly what is happening, (both on the track and in the pits) and appreciate the various strategies of each team.

Not like the V8's running round and having a demolition derby, with no compulsory refueling fuel stops, and tyre changes. The tactics employed in these pit stops is quite often the difference between winning and losing a race.

Yeah, I still watch it, for sure....

It's just not as exciting....

I think it's because all the guys in Q3 might have different fuel loads, so it's hard to get into it. Unlike last year, when they were all just going for it

I agree with your comments re differing fuel loads, as a matter of fact I believe this fuel load thing is  just a distraction from what would otherwise be an exciting part of F1.

Yeah... agreed.

But that whole fuel burning thing was ridiculous as well...

Right!!!!!!!!!!! But F1 is not dull even when it is.

It bloody well is dull. When was the last time the lead changed hands via an overtaking manoeuvre on the last lap of an F1 race?

The problem is that F1 is all about pit stops and race strategy these days. Actual racing is a very, very rare thing in the modern world of F1.

This is racing

ROSSI vs GIBERNAU

F1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dullF1 is not dull

Taki, I tend to disagree with you. What you say might have been true of F1 2 years ago.... Not anymore.

The racing has definitely gotten better, and thus far this year, it has been good!

F1 is improving, yes, but it's still a long way shy of the halcyon days of the 80's. Hamilton is hailed as exciting on the back of overtaking someone on his debut. But overtaking at the sharp end of the action is still a rare occurence (sans lap 1).

The most exciting of F1 races is only marginally more entertaining than the dullest in MotoGP. And nothing, literally nothing, in F1 in more than a decade comes close to Rossi vs Gibernau at Jerez a couple of seasons ago.

Agree, I used to like it in those days. And then Gibernau left, (he was my fav) and I kinda lost interest

Ha! Excellent F1 race today... but then Rossi v Stoner pooped all over it. Good stuff all around though.

Agreed...both were excellent. Hamiltons moves on Massa and Piquet in the closing stages were brilliant, and Rossi v Stoner was nothing short of breathtaking...I like both of them, but Rossi has always been my favourite. He should win the championship...I hope...

Yeh... I'm hoping Rossi will take it back from Stoner, but it doesn't look like it'll happen

Why on earth do you say that? Have you seen the championship table?

Cos it seems like Rossi has faded and Stoner is going from strength to strength. No?

Stoner's on the fastest (but certainly not the easiest to ride) bike in MotoGP, and has been for the last 2 seasons. Rossi by contrast has not had the fastest bike in MotoGP since he left Honda. Faded? A 25 point championship lead would suggest not.

ditto that ^

Ahhh... I didn't manage to catch this last race, but did watch the previous ones, which Stoner had the upper hand in.

I do hope Rossi makes it.

Stoner for King!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

C'mon Rossi!!!

C'mon Cadel !!!

GRrrrrr

Cadel has blown it..

Not just yet. Depends on the next two stages. Cadel is a diesel ... dependable, reliable, consistent ... but goes up a hill better than most diesels. Possibly a V8 diesel. The rest with maybe the exception of Menchov and Vande Velde are two strokers ... noisy, fast talking, flashy with limited capacity. Cadel will and may indeed need to pick up two minutes on the penultimate time trial stage where the little boys will be found wanting when forced to ride with only the help of Pat Malone. All he needs to do tonight and tomorrow night is limit the time loss in the hills.

Not cycling! The most drug addled and corrupt sport on the planet... and that includes weight lifting and professional Bridge.

Yes. Team Evans is certainly up against it. To win under those conditions would be a major coup. I think all those caught should be forced 4 at a time into a fiat bambino, punch a few cones each and be made to ride the most difficult stages.