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Originally posted by Valve Bounce
BTW Sparky, what are your feelings on the development of on board computer aids in F1? Do you think that F1 is heading in the right direction with these electronic aids?
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I think it’s a shame that the FIA decided they couldn’t adequately police TC.
I have no problem with Formula One representing the pinnacle of technology in racing. There are a million other formulae that cater to spectators wishing to watch a battle of ‘driver skill’ only. (Any of the one-make series, the Formula Palmer-Audi, any of the Formula Ford/Vauxhall/Holden/Renault series etc. Any one of those will provide a level playing field, and hopefully be a test of driver capabilities alone.)
But this isn’t why I watch Formula One. Grand Prix Racing, to me at least, has always been about a team (any team) being able to bring the best combination of engine, chassis, tyres and driver together every other weekend, so the rest of us can watch in open-mouth amazement as they battle against all odds for two hours.
To say that the technology is so effective, that any driver could do the job is stretching things too, I’m afraid. I’m sure it is easier than the ‘golden days’ but the FIA have tried (some might say successfully) to significantly reduce the hazards involved in all racing, but specifically Formula One.
The drivers currently signed to todays F1 teams are not there because they secretly hope the FIA will return to pre-’79 ideas on the car specification. They are in it for the thrill of speed, the financial reward, the notoriety. I’m sure there are many things they would like to change, but you don’t see them flocking to other series so that they can have a “True test of driver skill”, do you? Can you imagine any of the top ten drivers migrating to Formula Ford because the racing was closer? I can’t either.
That isn’t to say that I would like to watch Schumacher or Frentzen driving cars with TC, ABS, Power steering and so on, but you can limit the use of these systems without going to the lengths of suggesting that
EVERY control unit in the car be outlawed. The sport you would be left with would bear NO resemblance to the one you currently watch.
F1 has evolved. As long as I’ve been a fan, and for many years before that, regulations were changed and technology came along that have changed the face of Grand Prix racing for ever. Electronics are a feature of today. Almost every single electrical product sold today has a mass of electronics stuffed inside. It
IS possible to run a grand Prix car with magneto ignition, a bank of twin carburettors, zero sensors and hooked up to mechanical linkages, but that isn’t how the car of today operates. If you forced these components on todays Formula One cars, they’d be
historic Formula One cars, and you can already go see these if you would prefer. I enjoy listening to 20,000 rpm rather than a mechanical limit of 10,000 rpm.
I prefer to see a sport that is continually evolving, and the lengths the teams will go to, to try and gain the upper edge.
IF a particular team was cheating on the TC issue, that could/should have been investigated fully, not given in to.
I realise that this isn’t the popular view, but at least it is realistic.