Grand prix

[TheFram4]

Anyone watch the USA Grand prix or should I say proccession?

I would be really upset if I had paid to go see!!!

Lots of upset Americans, it was terrible

 

[Cochise]

.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[Cochise]

Alot of people were to blame here, Martin brundle was spot on when he suggested that Mrs Eccleston should have give Bernie a slap, Michelin knew they had a sub standard product and stood to their guns.

 

[AlanUK]

I can't see that anyone won here other than Ferrari and Michael Schumacher who both finally managed to get maximum points out of a race (I use the term race very loosely here ).

For a sport trying to raise its profile amongst US racing fans it can't be a good day

 

[squitty]

Wasn't it terrible...what a farce it was

 

[SplashMtn]

I see it as being a Michelin problem which could have been rectified, had it not been for the FIA and Ferrari. Fair enough, Michelin have failed their teams by not ensuring their tyres can withstand the consistently heavy loads but all compromises were rejected by the clueless FIA and arrogant Ferrari.

Michelin could have flown a new set of tyres over from France yesterday- rejected by the FIA. A full and fair race could have gone ahead with the installation of a chicane- rejected only by Ferrari (typically selfish behaviour in the midst of Formula One's demise in the USA as a sport).

I don't blame the supporters for being so angry at the circuit but this is a result of continued political divisions in the sport this year- Paul Stoddart was ready to pull his cars out (leaving only Ferrari in the race) but he was forced to race by Jordans participation.

...............this won't do anything to surpress the possibility of a breakaway series costing huge amounts to watch on Sky no doubt (which is surely what nobody wants).

 

[TheFram4]

Alot of people were to blame here, Martin brundle was spot on when he suggested that Mrs Eccleston should have give Bernie a slap, Michelin knew they had a sub standard product and stood to their guns.

ha yes what a great moment

 

[mandymouse]

From what I have read, it is only Michelin who is to blame for this farce. Why should the track be changed just cos it doesn't work for their tyres? They should have had this sorted out long before tonight. We watched the race, and as a Ferrari Fan, I was pleased that Schumacher and Barrichello have caught up in the championship, but I really felt sorry for the Jordan driver (Monterio) who was obviously very grateful for a podium place, however he got it.

BTW - the highlight of the night was when Michael nearly took Rubens out - what plonkers !!!

 

[disney13]

From what I have read, it is only Michelin who is to blame for this farce. Why should the track be changed just cos it doesn't work for their tyres? They should have had this sorted out long before tonight. We watched the race, and as a Ferrari Fan, I was pleased that Schumacher and Barrichello have caught up in the championship, but I really felt sorry for the Jordan driver (Monterio) who was obviously very grateful for a podium place, however he got it.

BTW - the highlight of the night was when Michael nearly took Rubens out - what plonkers !!!

Whilst I agree that it was Michelin who were in the wrong in respect to their tyres not working, I really don't think that this was a good advert for F1 as a whole. According to press reports, the Michelin teams wanted the chicane installed to enable the race to take place. They even offered to race without getting any Championship points. The only team not to agree was Ferrari.

This is another example of why I have lost interest in F1 this year.

Andy

 

[natalielongstaff]

i watched it......it was very dissapointing.
if that were football, well i can imagine the headlines !!
shame on f1

 

[composite guru]

I work for the Red Bull Racing Team (i build the Carbonfibre parts) and was totally embarassed about yesterday, i could not believe that a company like Michelin could make such a mistake.

I know Red Bull came in to F1 to break into the US market but this was not what they needed in their first year. I saw the look on Gunther Steiners face when he was on TV and he didn't look best pleased.

We now have to face the consequences of losing the US GP if the punters are not given their money back. I'm sure that most people that go to watch a race want to see more than 6 cars racing, if thats what they could expect to happen next year i'm sure many would not go.

All i can say is sorry to all the spectators and fans and hope they still carry on watching.

Matt

 

[BCT]

Everyone has already stated what we all think of the race.
It is the first time ever I havefast forwarded through a race. (Thank goodness for Sky+).
You have to feel sorry for all those spectators who paid good money and also the workers in all the teams who could not race (like Matt) due to the selfishness of Ferrari once again. "I'm all right Jack" attitude going against the majority decision. What happened to democracy?
Ferrari should remember that if it were not for the fans they would not be there.
At least we have the Champ car race to watch t5hat was on Eurosport later in the evening.

 

[Mrs Dazzle]

I've been following F1 for over 38 years . . . . girl and woman, so to speak.

I was appalled at what took place yesterday. Even more so given the "race" went ahead and Ferrari yet again managed to pick up some very, very dubious points. No points should have been awarded to anyone.

Yet another year in F1 is turning into a farce

As for Max Mosely, Bernie Ecclestone et al, for god sake someone put a rocket up their *****.

A sad day indeed.

The only highlight for me was hoping Barrichello was going to deck Scummy for almost taking him out . . . and we were spared any post race interviews too

 

[Richard Bruvofetc]

As much as I dislike the arrogance of Schumacher and Ferrari, I can't see why they should be "punished" for Michelin's problems. Remember, earlier in the season something similar happened where the Bridgestone teams asked for concessions because of problems with their tyres. They were refused point blank. The difference being, only a small number of cars not racing.

A complete farce!

 

[Beth__WDW23/6/02]

It was all soooo unbelievable,I feel for the poor fans who paid,queued in that heat and then sat there to watch only 6 cars going round, what a farce!
And whats even more unbelievable some fans was asked before the race started if they knew what was happening and non knew what was going to happen,shouldnt they have been told?

I dont blame them for being unhappy it hasnt given F1 a good vibe over there now has it?

 

[UKDEB]

Here is a selection of the exchange of correspondence between the FIA and Michelin which starts on 1st June.

Letter from FIA to Michelin
Wednesday June 1 2005

Pierre Dupasquier, Michelin Motorsport Director

Dear Pierre

Tyre failures in Formula One

We greatly value the presence of Michelin in Formula One and believe the Formula One World championship is enhanced by the Competition between tyre suppliers. However, there have been a number of tyre failures this season both in racing and, we understand, in testing.

It is impossible for the FIA to assess the structural integrity, wear resistance or strength of a tyre. We have neither the technical resources nor the necessary knowledge. Formula One is therefore totally dependent on the tyre suppliers to ensure that no risks are taken in the pursuit of performance.

Tyres should be built to be reliable under all circumstances, including prolonged periods under the safety car, off road excursions, abuse on kerbs, contact with other cars and contact with debris on the track.

A tyre failure can put not only the driver at risk, but may endanger memberss of the public. We are confident that we can rely on you to make every effort to see that there are no more tyre failures this season.

Thank you very much for your efforts to make sure that Formula One is as safe as possible for everyone involved. We are sending an identical letter to Bridgestone.

With best wishes

Yours sincerely

Max Mosley

cc Formula One Team Principals

Letter from Representatives of Michelin to Charlie Whiting, the FIA Formula One Race Director:
Saturday June 18 2005
Indianapolis

Charlie Whiting, FIA Race Director and Safety delegate

Dear Mr Whiting

Having analysed and fully evaluated the tyre failures that have occurred over the Indianapolis Grand Prix practice sessions we have been unable to identify a root cause.

The current rules and timescale do not permit the use of an alternative tyre solution and the race must be performed with the qualifying tyres.

Michelin has in the sole interest of safety informed its partner teams that we do not have total assurance that all tyres that qualified the cars can be used unless the vehicle speed in turn 13 can be reduced.

Michelin very much regrets this situation, but has taken this decision after careful consideration and in the best interests of safety at the event.

We trust that the FIA can understand our position and we remain at your disposal if you want any further information.

Pierre Dupasquier
Michelin Motorsport Director

Nick Shorrock
Director of Michelin F1 activities

Cc:
Bernie Ecclestone
Michelin teams
Ron Dennis (West McLaren-Mercedes)
Flavio Briatore (Mild Seven Renault F1)
Frank Williams (BMW WilliamsF1 Team)
Peter Sauber (Sauber Petronas)
Christian Horner (Red Bull Racing)
Nick Fry (B-A-R Honda)
John Howett (Panasonic Toyota Racing)

Letter from Charlie Whiting, the FIA Formula One Race Director, in reply to above letter from Representatives of Michelin:

19 June, 2005

Dear Mr Dupasquier,
Dear Mr Shorrock,

We have received your letter of 18 June.

We are very surprised that this difficulty has arisen. As you know, each team is allowed to bring two different types of tyre to an event so as to ensure that a back-up (usually of lower performance) is available should problems occur. It is hard to understand why you have not supplied your teams with such a tyre given your years of experience at Indianapolis.

That the teams you supply are not in possession of such a tyre will also be a matter for the FIA to consider in due course under Article 151c of the International Sporting Code.

No doubt you will inform your teams what is the maximum safe speed for their cars in Turn 13. We will remind them of the need to follow your advice for safety reasons. We will also ask them to ensure their cars do not obstruct other competitors.

Some of the teams have raised with us the possibility of running a tyre which was not used in qualifying. We have told them this would be a breach of the rules to be considered by the stewards. We believe the penalty would not be exclusion but would have to be heavy enough to ensure that no team was tempted to use qualifying tyres in the future.

Another possibility would be for the relevant teams repeatedly to change the affected tyre during the race (we understand you have told your teams the left rear is safe for a maximum of ten laps at full speed). If the technical delegate and the stewards were satisfied that each change was made because the tyre would otherwise fail (thus for genuine safety reasons) and that the relevant team were not gaining an advantage, there would be no penalty. If this meant using tyres additional to a teams’ allocation, the stewards would consider all the circumstances in deciding what penalty, if any, to apply.

Finally, it has been suggested that a chicane should be laid out in Turn 13. I am sure you will appreciate that this is out of the question. To change the course in order to help some of the teams with a performance problem caused by their failure to bring suitable equipment to the race would be a breach of the rules and grossly unfair to those teams which have come to Indianapolis with the correct tyres.

Yours sincerely,

Charlie Whiting
FIA Formula One Race Director

cc: Bernie Ecclestone
Ron Dennis (West McLaren-Mercedes)
Flavio Briatore (Mild Seven Renault F1)
Frank Williams (BMW WilliamsF1 Team)
Peter Sauber (Sauber Petronas)
Christian Horner (Red Bull Racing)
Nick Fry (B-A-R Honda)
John Howett (Panasonic Toyota Racing)
Jean Todt (Scuderia Ferrari)
Colin Kolles (Jordan Grand Prix)
Paul Stoddart (Minardi F1 Team)

Formula One Press Corp


On the face of it, it's very hard to argue with the FIA's standpoint. My disquiet stems from the fact that they didn't demonstrate any leadership qualities yesterday, when it really mattered. I can't help feeling they should have taken control of the situation and then apportioned blame/pursued their legal remedies after the event. Michelin have messed up big time and will undoubtedly suffer appropriate repercussions, but I don't think they should be made the scapegoat for yesterday's race failing to take place.

The Bridgestone runners can only be accused of exploiting their competitive advantage and, after all, it is a competition! At least Ferrari, unlike Paul Stoddart, didn't act hypocritically. His high moral standpoint was kicked into touch as soon as it threatened to impact him!

 

[mickman1962]

Most Americans are only interested in NASCAR anymore (unfortunately) so the fact that this actually happened was lost to 99.9% of us.