Without him there wouldn´t be any F1 scene any more.
I will admit that Bernie brought F1 into the modern age when he started his orchestration of the sport, but his myopic leadership in the last 15 years or so has been the ruin of the sport.
I won't go into the good things that have happened under Bernie, because to be honest, the list is long and impressive. He's done many good things for the sport- in the past...
But I think the bad list is pretty long, and pretty bad. Under Bernie we have had grooved tires introduced (and thankfully eliminated), engines that have gone from majestic V-10s that could rev near 20k rpm (and sounded AWESOME) to V-8s to V-6s with an electrical junkyard strapped to their backsides that sound like crap and are almost as slow as a GP2 car (at 10 times the price- maybe 20 times?). We have DRS zones where now, if you have a car that is marginally faster (or slower!) than the car ahead of you, you get a free pass at least once every lap!
Refueling- in, out, in, out...
Tire warmers- threatened to be removed every once in a while, then retained due to safety reasons! Really? They can't figure out a way to drive safely on cold tires?
Ground effect. Until Colin Chapman came along it didn't even apply, then it was perfected, over-developed, and ultimately banned. Modern high performance road cars now use it- and the pinnacle of the world of motorsport has to use a "legality plank" under the car to make sure it's NOT being used!
Wings! Look at those delicate over-thought sculptures on the front of F1 cars. How is it possible that drivers lose parts of their wings and still go fast- and even win races? All those thing do is guarantee a shower of sharp carbon-fiber covering the track at intervals.
Wheels and tires- my 1987 Spider came stock with 14" wheels. My 100hp Scion daily driver now has 17" wheels on it! F1 has stuck to 13" wheels forever. Why? Yes, I know- next year they're finally changing. 25 years too late for me...
We have had team orders in, team orders out, in, out,...
Tilke tracks... He's gotta go with Bernie- and soon! Not one driver or spectator puts a Tilke track at the top of their list of greats.
Thanks to Bernie, we have the most technologically advanced high performance power systems ever conceived for an automobile, requiring a fleet of engineers to design, program, build, and maintain them, and a steering wheel in the ****pit with more bells and whistles than the Space Shuttle had. Now, they've limited what the support staff can say to the driver! I'll bet you Neil Armstrong had fewer controls in the Lunar Module than Lewis has in his Merc, but Neil had all of Mission Control in Houston backing
him up!
So- this is a team sport. That's what they say. If you build these mega complex machines, then it's ridiculous to limit what can be said on the radio! What's the point in the data gathering and complexity if you can't relay it and deploy it? They've engineered the system, and then they realize how screwed up it is, and they think that curtailing radio chatter is making a better show?! How many people in the stands in Melbourne do you think were listening to (or caring about) what was being said on the radios?! Even on TV coverage, they have teams of people monitoring the radios for a juicy bit to put on the air. I wonder how many people are being paid by the FIA to listen to and transcribe radio communications and report possible rules violations. What a waste! The teams should take a page out of the allies in WW2 and all speak Navaho on the radios!
I wonder, if you took all of the "green energy" crap off of these engines- with all of their weight, and you optimized the existing engines to run without them, which would be faster? I'll bet a stripped down (hence lighter) modern F1 car would run rings around it's hybrid-hampered twin.
I accept that the cost pressures are enormous (I remember when BMW made special qualifying engines that made over 1500hp out of a 1.5 liter turbo, but was only designed to do one quali run before being scrapped- and they weren't alone!) Those were great days for us spectators, but I know they are behind us. I'm OK with that. We need to cap costs, and the limited number of components like engines, transmissions, etc. seems to be a great way to do that. We need more clear thinking like that. Does it effect the show? Nope.
What about the spare car? Teams can't have a built spare car ready to go! Why not? They're allowed to have all the parts for a spare car, and they're allowed to build one from parts if one is wiped out over a weekend. Why is this smart?
Suppose a driver wrecks his car badly in P3. The team has to work its' butts off fixing that car or building a new one- and if they build it, it won't be ready for quali. One less driver for the show (the quali show at least- they give free passes to Sunday's show because they know how screwed up their own rules are.)
Same in quali- say a driver gets a time good enough to put him in the show, then wrecks. Team must blow curfew to build a new car overnight.
How about a problem Sunday morning? OK- put him in the back of the grid, but put him in the show in a spare car! Sometimes the charges from the back are the best action on the track...
It's the inconsistencies in the sport that ruin it. Stop building up one end of the sport and hobbling it on the other. It all goes back to the lack of clear thinking management- and Bernie is at the top of the list.
Anyway, I'm ranting enough.
Lewis has said he'd like to have a simpler car.
I dream of a re-imagined F1 car from the 60s- roughly cigar-shaped, V-8, V-10, or V-12 in back, maybe 2 liters give or take, no turbos, no hybrids. BIG FAT TIRES. Tiny wings, throw in some ground effect. Manual gearboxes- 6 speed max. Refueling is OK, total fuel for the race restricted. At least 2 tire compounds. Free choice of gear ratios. Talk all you like on the radio. One 3-position switch allowed in the ****pit for engine management- economy, normal, thirsty. Adjust brake bias all you want. No other buttons- no diff, engine mapping, clutch settings, etc.
Bet you'll get some great racing on the track!
Wanna generate more enthusiasm? Require the basic engine to be homogolated by using them in a road car- minimum run of, let's say 200 units. Think of the excitement (and marketing potential) of an F1 engine in a limited edition Ferrari, Mercedes, Honda, or Lexus! Kind of like the Dino and F2. I guarantee they'll all be sold before they're built! :grin2:
Anyway- remember the show! People don't care about who can manipulate the buttons on his steering wheel better than the next guy!
I'll keep dreaming. Someday we'll have world peace, famine and disease will be eliminated, and Bernie and Tilke will be gone.... Ahhh... 0