Honda Quits F1!!

[ccm911]

Looks like Honda will be pulling out of F1.  Pity.  They ran a good team, and were well represented.  Is this a sign of things to come?  They quote a figure of $2.9 million to run a season, but I think that is way too low.  I would imagine that it would be more like something in the hundreds of millions if you took into consideration the R&D expenses.

Will there be a similar decline in DE and amateur racing as well?  Looks like this economic slump will be affecting a lot of folk's leisure time activities.

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/28066396/

[Vytenis]

BERLIN (Reuters) - German carmaker Mercedes said on Friday Formula One teams must cut costs by at least 50 percent over the next two years although its own financial position remained solid.

Remainder of story: http://uk.reuters.com/article/sportsNews...sportsNews

 

[Ccns23]

I can definitely see people cutting back on things like DE weekends and such. But, that might spur a little more interest in the Auto X events since they are exponentially cheaper than a DE event would be. This year is gonna be a crazy rollercoaster for sure. Better buckle up!!

[STEVEMCMORN]

  They quote a figure of $2.9 million to run a season, but I think that is way too low. 



I read a report that Toyota spent the most last year with a budget of 280 million pounds (not dollars); Mcclaren were second with 278M pounds and Ferrari were third with 270M pounds - not cheap!

[nplenzick]

ccm911 wrote:

Looks like Honda will be pulling out of F1. Pity. They ran a good team, and were well represented. Is this a sign of things to come? They quote a figure of $2.9 million to run a season, but I think that is way too low. I would imagine that it would be more like something in the hundreds of millions if you took into consideration the R&D expenses.

Will there be a similar decline in DE and amateur racing as well? Looks like this economic slump will be affecting a lot of folk's leisure time activities.

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/28066396/

What's killing F1 is one person Bernie E-Ahole. 30 -50 million to have a GP in your country. No F1 in North America, no North American driver, his abandonment of long time venues, riduculus high ticket prices are just a few of the things. I still remember when he said back in the late 70's how Watkins Glen was not the place to have a GP because it was so far away from the general population. Gee I guess NASCAR and the IRL kind proved him wrong about that. Why would Honda continue when they can showcase their motors here in the IRL and in sportscar racing. It just doesn't make sense to continue in F1.

I just hope our equivalent, Tony G-Ahole doesn't screw up the new Indy Car series. This series could really shine here in North America and get back to what it use to be when it was CART in the 80's. Since T George is involved I don't have much hope!

I watched 10 F1 races at the Glen with the last being just about 29 years ago, I can still remember watching and more importantly hearing cars coming out of the toe of the boot and climbing the hill. It's a sound I'll never forget!

Leisure activities have already been hit hard. This past year most of the motorcycle events we attended have been down 30-50%. Hotels, motels, campgrounds all were down. I still expect things to turn around sometime this spring, it'll be a gradual process but by this time next year the economy will be chugging along nicely . Then the "experts will be worrying about inflation.

[AMoore]

Unfortunately, Indy isn't nearly as exciting as F-1.  The premier event uses a boring oval, and other events take place at airports and parking lots.  We need to have more Indy events that run through city streets.  How awesome would it be if there was an Indy race that used the Ben Franklin Pkwy, including the circles, and part of Kelly Drive?  What a backdrop! 

[nplenzick]

Elkhart Lake, Watkins Glen, Mid Ohio, Mazda raceway boring? I don't think so. Indy use to be a great race at one time before TG got involved. I still remember 250K in attendance for pole day. Those days are long gone thanks to Mr G.  Although I'm not a big oval fan I would have to say most of the street circuits besides Long Beach are just as boring as the 1 1/2 mile ovals. No room to pass, concrete barriers, short straights, and tight corners leave little excitement for race fans.   What you need is a good mix of road courses and different type of ovals , the way it use to be, before TG formed the IRL. I thought Nazerath was very entertaining and the pure speed at Michigan was tremendous. We now have many great road courses through out the country. Barber, Road Atlanta, could easily be added to the schedule. It would be neat to have a race like you suggest in Phila, but why bother when you have Thunder Bolt a few miles away. It's all there waiting for someone who has good business skills, who's a genuine enthusiast, and who is willing to create this by just making a reasonable profit unlike the greedy Mr E & T. Come on Rodger, you got everything it takes to bring open wheel racing to what it once was here in this great country!