Should F1 have deserted the desert?
by Craig Normansell with others, on Feb 23rd, 2011Welcome to the Scrutineering Bay, where hot topics are scrapped over by as many Badger writers you can shake a stick at. Each week a question is asked relevant to what's happening in Grand Prix racing and whoever is in earshot at the Sett when I ask it gets the chance to put their thoughts across. This week's participants are myself Craig Normansell, Graham Moggipaldi, Jimmy Von Weeks and Benson Jammichello
This week we've all been unusually following the beginning of news programmes (instead of a glimpse of a shiny new F1 car at the end), and with recent announcements being made, we ask the question:
"Should Bahrain have taken place?"
Up first this week is Graham:
Formula One used to thrive on its reputation for extravagance, decadence even, with playboy drivers, powerful engines and massive budgets, detached from everyday reality almost like a twentieth century version of Louis XVI’s court at Versailles, but over the first years of the twenty first century it has been attempting to tone down its image.
It has dabbled in green technologies (helping with the development of KERS for example), it has restricted the power of the engines, restricted testing and increased the required mileage of engines and gearboxes and toyed with the idea of capping budgets to prove it is at least aware of the outside world in which the rest of us have to live.
So F1 has begun taking an interest in politics with a small p, but has generally stayed aloof from Politics with a capital P, having held Grands Prix in apartheid South Africa and indeed in Bahrain under the regime of King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa. However, the current situation in Bahrain is very different and for Formula One to hold a race there under the present conditions is completely unacceptable.
It conjures up an image of Bernie as Marie Antoinette telling the revolting peasants, ‘Let them watch F1,’ and we all know how things turned out for her.
Graham brings up the point that although F1 is a leader in certain areas, when it comes to others it needs to be firmly in the background. Next to have a crack is Jimmy:
As a former politics student I don't really want to get too deep in to the political aspect of this - it brings back bad memories of seminars for which I was totally unprepared and exams where I couldn't remember the difference between various types of voting system, much to my detriment.
My answer is pretty simple: no, F1 should not have gone to Bahrain. It has no place there at this moment in time and would look incredibly arrogant were it to swan in to a nation in the midst of political revolt and stage a sporting event financed by the same ruling family that the people of Bahrain are trying to oust.
F1 has trod shaky ground before. Staggeringly, it continued to race in apartheid-stricken South Africa until 1985, long after most sports had turned their backs on the country for its treatment of black citizens. I'm not trying to draw a parallel or get in to a political debate (like I said, bad memories), but rather suggesting that F1 must avoid casting another dark cloud over itself if it visited a state which is making headline news the world over for its political troubles. I for one would feel ashamed of the sport I love had it had done so.
Even though there's going to be a trend here, everyone will have different reasons for why F1 should not be in Bahrain. Jimmy's is that a sport shouldn't be bigger than a country, no matter what's involved.
Next is Benson:
My answer to this question is a very clear and resounding "no".
Obviously the main issue for Bernie Ecclestone and the wider F1 fraternity was that of safety - of the drivers, crew, fans and the whole F1 circus.
However, it's more fundamental than that. Simply put, F1 had no business whatsoever going to a country currently involved in attempting to suppress a popular protest movement by a sustained and severe application of force.
People in Bahrain are fighting for something much more important than Formula 1: to have their voices heard in their society.
For many countries, having a Grand Prix is important not (only) for the racing, but because it's a prestige sporting event with massive commercial interests. Places actively seek out the races and governments often subsidise them. It's in this light that we have to view the decision.
The Bahraini royal family were intimately involved in getting the Grand Prix to the country, building the circuit and moving it to first place on the calendar. People are dying and F1 had no business being anywhere close, especially if it involved giving the regime any sort of helping hand or international credibility. It's a matter of conscience and it would have been to F1's detriment had it gone.
Also, on a purely F1 level, having the opening race of the season in Australia will be far, far more exciting. Good News.
While Jimmy stayed away from politics, Ben wades right on in. It's a situation of suppresion and oppression and the last thing it needs is any kind of event that can be targeted by protests or worse.
Finally, I have my say:
I can guess right now that most of my fellow Badgers will be saying "no", and I for one am with them. The simple fact of the matter is Formula One is a sport first and foremost. The moment it tries to be anything else other than that it will fail and fans will leave.
The worrying thing from my point of view is that as a sport, it's the governing body that should be at the forefront of any issue or problem. Which begs the question; why is Bernie dealing with the Bahrain royal family? Surely Jean Todt should be involved as well, seeing as he's FIA president and the FIA set the rules which everyone must abide by. If it is boiling down to money, then it's a very sad thing indeed.
What's happening in Bahrain, Egypt, etc is a tragic occurrence, and one F1 needs to stay away from. In the past it has held events in countries with disputable political ethics but all it needs now is, for once, is to stay firmly out of the spotlight.
So, there's the Sett's opinions on the cancellation of the Bahrain Grand Prix. We, as fans of Formula One, are in agreement that it was the right thing to do not to stage the race in such a political melting pot. Yes, it puts the season back a few weeks and some fans have to get refunds, but it's a small price to pay compared to others.
Comments and Discussion
For me the question isn't should F1 have Deserted the desert but should F1 have gone in the first place? Over the past ten years F1 has slowly been up rooted from it's 'home' and airlifted to counties that see F1 as a status symbol, a tool to help them gain international recognition! Every week we seem to read a new report of an up and coming country scrambling to host a GP like it's the latest must have accessory. The majority of these countries have a little, if not motorsport heritage and the ticket prices are well out of reach of the local population.
The solution for me would be to have a F1 winter series like in GP2 where new world circuits AND rookie F1 drivers can both prover their worth. The cars should be at least a year behind the current spec to limit development gains and this could also be a training ground for new mechanics/engineers.
I hate to think what the F1 fans in France in particular think of this. They, along with Canada, Spa, Silverstone and the German circuits have been left on the edge of financial meltdown because of Bernies Dollar chasing antics, more bothered with the facilities in the paddock than anything else. I am truly sorry for whats happening to the people in Bahrain and the middle east but this has now come back to bite bernie where the sun don't shine and now he's been left with the bill for the cancellation!
Rant over
What about F1 being in Brazil where government sponsored 'death gangs' kill street children. Only last week Amnesty International reported that '19 police officers were arrested on suspicion of belonging to a death squad believed to have murdered children and women.'
But I suppose it's easier for the racists t target Bahrain rather than Brazil.
1st of all - YES - F1 was correct in not going but their are a coiuplke of issues here.
1st of all the British FCO (Foreign and Commonwealth Office) has issued a warning against all but essential travel to Bahrain, this automatically voids any form of travel insurance if you are foolhardy enough to go there!
2nd - As far as i am aware, Bernie didn't cancel the GP - the Bahrainee government/ruling family did. Putting the onus on them was a stute bit of political manoeuvring by Bernie.. If teh race was cancelled (which it is) it wasn't FOM that did it and therefore isn't liable for refunds, if it went ahead and was a disaster politically then he could wash his hands of the mess and point at the rulers who should have cancelled it... Cynic?? me????.......
One additional point - I believe Aston Martin and McLaren are both substantially owned by Bahrainee interests (less then controlling interests but significant none the less), shakey times ahead for all who have chased the oil money in recent years.
I fail to see where racism comes into the debate Caroline? For me the point is where the majority of F1 fan would prefer to see F1 races. Of the new countries that have recently come in the our sport, two have made a very good impression on me. These being Malaysia and Singapore. Both countries have an appetite for racing AND the majority of the population can afford to go! The same, on both counts can't be said about China, Turkey and Bahrain. I would rather see The French public enjoy their home race again than seeing the Chinese army fill the grandstands to give the illusion of interest/affordability for F1 in China
Quote from the telegraph this morning regarding the race fee
Hitting back at reports that he waited for Bahrain’s rulers to call off next month’s season-opening race so that he would not miss out on the staging fee, Ecclestone claimed that he is not charging them a penny.
Although FOM’s commercial contracts are normally a closely guarded secret, the 80 year-old said that inaccuracies in what is being reported were such that it was necessary to clarify matters.
“The fee that is normally being paid for the event is not being paid,” Ecclestone said. “I am not charging them for a race"
A nice touch from the showman himself
I was actually referring to the ticket sales refunds (not being privy to the FOM contracts either 
) and other commercial contracts undertaken by the circuit (sponsorship, hotels, etc.)
There's no racism involved. Of course Brazil has problems, as do a number of other nations that host races (and that's a whole other debate), but there aren't tanks on the streets of the capital city. The situation in Bahrain is far more volatile and it's in that sense that it shouldn't host a grand prix.
Good grief - things are really kicking off here!
Gary - I agree with you in the sense that F1 has gone to countries with little or no motorsport heritage, but my main issue is the quality of the circuits. If I were a minor despot with money to burn and I ended up with a circuit similar to some we have on the calendar now I think I'd have a fit.
Caroline - I agree with Jimmy. I think it's best to leave it at that.
Lastly, I can't believe that whatever happened, Bernie would allow himself to lose money.
On the downside, the Bahrain GP is cancelled and we'll have to wait 2 weeks for our F1 fix.
On the upside, the Bahrain GP is cancelled!
Tut tut Jimmy on not going into your exams properly prepared!
In my view the situation in Bahrain does have some echoes with Cuba in 1958 when Batista was using the military to keep hold of Havana while Castro and the revolutionaries were making regular incursions from the Sierra Maestra. Fangio's kidnapping at that GP was an attempt by Castro to utilise the global reach of motor racing to bring the situatrion in Cuba to the attention of the world. And the Bahraini protesters made it clear that they would have used the GP for a similar, political purpose.
For what it's worth , I think that dollar signs have clouded Bernie's judgement in regard to the new F1 locations and tracks such as Bahrain, Turkey and China ( with their questionable human rights records), and could all ultimately fall by the wayside much like Cuba did post Batista.
I don't really care about the politics, but i'll chip-in anyway.
Bahrain has some issues to deal with and it would really not make the country look good to host a large sporting event, it would display ignorance of their issues. Sweeping them under the carpet to be dealt with "later maybe".
Cancelling the GP was the right thing to do for the sake of the country. Also if there is violence and misdemeanour occurring then it was also the right thing to do for the teams and drivers. Regardless of how it might politically impact either side, we don't want our guys and girls travelling there to get into trouble.
FOM wanted the organisers to say they couldn't hold the race, not because then they could charge them a penalty for cancelling, but because (imo) it looks better for someone to say "actually, i hold my hands up, i can't do this right now" rather than the expectant party saying "you don't look ready to us, you're not doing it". Doing it this way also leaves the possibility of rescheduling. If FOM had elected not to go then the race would be cancelled and wouldn't take place at all in 2011.
At least this way there is still the possibility of it coming in later, either in place of Valencia or the week after Hungary. Shortening the summer holiday from 4 weeks to 3 won't be a big issue, the factories can still have their 2 week shutdown period. I don't think tagging it onto the end of the season is likely since that would then push us into December.
As for the Bahrain race itself, i've been surprised with how hostile some of the comments have been in the other post relating to the story. It's like people watched last years race and decided every Bahrain GP was exactly like that. Shows what they know hey?
The Bahrain GP is normally a decent enough race, last year was the odd one out due to an idiotic decision to run an extended layout which promoted processionism. It would be a shame to lose the GP from this years calendar as i put it ahead many of the racetracks for excitement, it's not one of the best but it's not one of the worst either and because of this it's one of the ones we need to keep.
Forget returning to "classic" tracks which aren't on the calendar anymore unless you've got a spare billion in the bank to donate for better facilities. That's the main reason why tracks are discarded.