Poll Ferrari threaten to quit F1... again!
- Thread starter Brogan
- Start date
I voted no, but meant to vote yes - so quits there then
I don't think Ferrari leaving would in itself bring about an end to F1, but it might be the straw that breaks the camel's back.
You do have the problem, Ferrari are not only every school boy's dream car, they are also a national identity for the Italian fans and the first team most part-time fans would remember the name of - on the other side their a bunch of stuck up numpties that have got their heads stuck so far up their arse that daylight is just a memory....
If F1 could stay healthy without the Ferrari culture ..... now there's a petition to sign!
I think we all know that Ferrari isn't going anywhere. It doesn't hurt anybody to pontificate about the possible ramifications of their departure though.
One of the worst things about a grid without Ferrari would be the lost satisfaction of a GP victory over the vaunted Ferrari marque. I love seeing that grim look on Domenicali's face after the horse gets made to look like a mule.
One of the worst things about a grid without Ferrari would be the lost satisfaction of a GP victory over the vaunted Ferrari marque. I love seeing that grim look on Domenicali's face after the horse gets made to look like a mule.
Andy Karter
Rookie
Now if Ferrari were to turn round and say we're going to have a blue car from next year folk would be shocked and surprised. The fact they're saying this instead nobody is in the least bit surprised or really upset are they?
Some interesting posts in this topic.Most of the posters on here are dedicated F1 fans and have a much greater knowledge of F1 than most.
We have all heard this from Luca before and are getting somewhat tired of hearing the same points reiterated now virtually every year.
But it is important to remember that F1 is a global sport.If you asked he same question in say Brazil, or any of the Asian countries I very much suspect that the opinions they would put forward would be rather different.
If you take into account Ferrari's record 2010 road car sales which is a different aspect I know. But its clear from these figures that Ferrari does have a strong presence in the new F1 venues.
If Ferrari did pull out of F1 it would hurt without doubt.But it it wouldn't kill it.
We have all heard this from Luca before and are getting somewhat tired of hearing the same points reiterated now virtually every year.
But it is important to remember that F1 is a global sport.If you asked he same question in say Brazil, or any of the Asian countries I very much suspect that the opinions they would put forward would be rather different.
If you take into account Ferrari's record 2010 road car sales which is a different aspect I know. But its clear from these figures that Ferrari does have a strong presence in the new F1 venues.
If Ferrari did pull out of F1 it would hurt without doubt.But it it wouldn't kill it.
Andy Karter
Rookie
Would it not hurt Ferrari more than it would hurt F1 though?
It would certainly stifle debate in various forums if Ferrari were to leave! Who would be the next ' bad guy'?
I would actually miss them and would feel that F1 would be somehow 'lacking' without their presence! Who knows why, I don't but I might come back to you on that once I've thought it through.
I would actually miss them and would feel that F1 would be somehow 'lacking' without their presence! Who knows why, I don't but I might come back to you on that once I've thought it through.
I found it interesting that Luca brought up the Baghetti win to justify 3rd cars being allowed. The car that he drove was a private entry, not a third factory car. There is a world of difference. I have long made known my desire that single-car privateers (ala Rob Walker and Lord Hesketh) should be allowed. Third team cars SHOULD NOT!! There would be a huge temptation to have "a new, young driver" in such a car and use him, like a subtle Piquet Jr, to block the opposition. Then the factory team could claim cover saying that the blocking was unintentional and the result of inexperience.
Andy Karter
Rookie
I think it fair to say F1 wouldn't be a better place without them; but no team or individual is bigger than the sport despite what Bernie might think.
I very much doubt it would hurt Ferrari.They have been around far to long and are almost a byword for high performance cars.
Andy Karter
Rookie
Would folk not say that Ferrari; the biggest, most experienced team in F1, with the biggest budget and arguably the best driver couldn't win anything so left the sport after unsuccessfully getting a rule change in their favour?
Would a few lucky punters in a position to buy a new super car not go and have a look at the McLaren first? Would the brand name of Ferrari not get significantly less exposure if not in F1 for 20 odd races/year?
It would depend on what they did instead, and how much media effort they could put behind it.
John Surtees talks of his days at Maranello, and how the team only started taking an interest in the F1 season in June...once the Le Mans 24 Hours had been won. That was what was selling the cars back then - and it would be easier to argue for relevance to the customers' product too.
Obviously I am aware that times have changed a great deal, but nothing is set in stone, and F1 has no divine right to be the category of motorsport with the greatest exposure, or level of interest.
From my observations at various circuits there are more Ferrari fans present at the races than there are fans of all the other teams put together. It is not just an Italian thing, I have met British, French, Belgian, Dutch, Swedish, Finnish, German etc Ferrari fans all over the place. One time I even had two Japanese girls in full Ferrari gear sitting next to me, they only watched the qualifying and the race, it was only Ferrari they wanted to see.
So there could be a problem in fan land but I suspect that it might be less in TV land, although even there it might cause some to switch off.
de Monte regularly says things for effect, it's part of the Italian way of doing things. It is also rumoured that he may be interested in getting involved at the top level in Italian politics, he may think that a macho Italian image is an advantage. Mach Brit has been used by politicians here.
So there could be a problem in fan land but I suspect that it might be less in TV land, although even there it might cause some to switch off.
de Monte regularly says things for effect, it's part of the Italian way of doing things. It is also rumoured that he may be interested in getting involved at the top level in Italian politics, he may think that a macho Italian image is an advantage. Mach Brit has been used by politicians here.
Dizzi
Podium Finisher
F1 would undoubtedly be less without Ferrari but it wouldn't be nothing.
It would be a case of 'the King is dead - long live the King!' and the show would carry on.
If LdM keeps saying these things one day he'll have to practise what he preaches & then he'll have the wrath of the Tifosi to deal with.
As Andy said the loss of Ferrari from F1 is nothing compared to the loss of F1 from the fans thanks to Sky (or to be more accurate Bernie).
It would be a case of 'the King is dead - long live the King!' and the show would carry on.
If LdM keeps saying these things one day he'll have to practise what he preaches & then he'll have the wrath of the Tifosi to deal with.
As Andy said the loss of Ferrari from F1 is nothing compared to the loss of F1 from the fans thanks to Sky (or to be more accurate Bernie).
A sweeping and inaccurate statement methinks. For one, when I was a schoolboy I was enamoured with Porsches and German cars still have a place in my heart.
When I was a school boy many, many moons ago, my dream car was never a Ferrari. I had two dream cars, both equally unattainable. One was a genuine, gleaming red AC Cobra owned by a local Vauxhall dealer, which was usually to be found sat in his showroom (but very occasionally seen and heard burbling through town), the other was a Triumph TR6. After those it would have been a 'Persuaders' style Aston Martin DBS.
Anyway, I wouldn't miss Ferrari a bit, if they left F1 tomorrow. I'd miss Mclaren and Williams, as I still miss the original Team Lotus and Tyrrell.
Josh
Champion Elect
You know, Chad's comment about how he'd miss Mclaren and Williams got me thinking.
I'm sure that a lot of fans in the UK wouldn't miss Ferrari, probably mainly due to the amount of British teams that have/had a rivalry with Ferrari: Mclaren, Williams, Team Lotus. Mclaren being the most prominent in recent years obviously, with (I guess) a lot of fans supporting Mclaren with Williams holding some kind of special place there too. So for a lot of British fans Formula One without Ferrari would still be Formula One, and for some people it would even be a better Formula One.
In other countries though I don't expect this to be the case. Ferrari have a lot of fans here in the Netherlands - if you mention F1 to someone who doesn't really follow it but only watches the occasional race, they're most likely to mention Ferrari, Christijan Albers or SpykerF1 - and even a lot of regular viewers mention Ferrari as their favorite team and I know that most people who follow F1 here mainly follow it because Ferrari competes in it.
I guess that in Germany Ferrari also have (or had) a large following when Schumacher was driving for them, of course I don't know this, maybe GermanF1 knows?
Anyway I guess my point is that it really all depends on personal opinion and viewpoints and nationality can play a pretty large part in this too.
For me personally I'd still watch F1 if Ferrari left and I don't need Ferrari to enjoy F1, I do, however, want them to compete in F1 because of their history and because of their rivalry with Mclaren and now Red Bull. I'd still feel like there is a pretty large hole that no other team will be able to fill. Ferrari is unique, you either love them or hate them, but you can't deny that they spice up the sport.
I'm sure that a lot of fans in the UK wouldn't miss Ferrari, probably mainly due to the amount of British teams that have/had a rivalry with Ferrari: Mclaren, Williams, Team Lotus. Mclaren being the most prominent in recent years obviously, with (I guess) a lot of fans supporting Mclaren with Williams holding some kind of special place there too. So for a lot of British fans Formula One without Ferrari would still be Formula One, and for some people it would even be a better Formula One.
In other countries though I don't expect this to be the case. Ferrari have a lot of fans here in the Netherlands - if you mention F1 to someone who doesn't really follow it but only watches the occasional race, they're most likely to mention Ferrari, Christijan Albers or SpykerF1 - and even a lot of regular viewers mention Ferrari as their favorite team and I know that most people who follow F1 here mainly follow it because Ferrari competes in it.
I guess that in Germany Ferrari also have (or had) a large following when Schumacher was driving for them, of course I don't know this, maybe GermanF1 knows?
Anyway I guess my point is that it really all depends on personal opinion and viewpoints and nationality can play a pretty large part in this too.
For me personally I'd still watch F1 if Ferrari left and I don't need Ferrari to enjoy F1, I do, however, want them to compete in F1 because of their history and because of their rivalry with Mclaren and now Red Bull. I'd still feel like there is a pretty large hole that no other team will be able to fill. Ferrari is unique, you either love them or hate them, but you can't deny that they spice up the sport.
Some interesting comments.Firstly I feel that its very much an age related question.My dream car was always a Ferrari but that was in my shoolboy years which were way back in the 1950's early sixties.
Ferrari's then were the ultimate car to own.
Recent surveys af the average of Ferrari owners show that by far the average age is the late forties and early fifties and in the the high income self employed professional bracket.
“I build cars for young men that only old men can afford” - Enzo Ferrari
Ferrari's then were the ultimate car to own.
Recent surveys af the average of Ferrari owners show that by far the average age is the late forties and early fifties and in the the high income self employed professional bracket.
“I build cars for young men that only old men can afford” - Enzo Ferrari
Over the last years I figured out that you can't compare German people to British people as far as their interest in sport/athletes is concerned.
The average German only cares about a certain sport, when there is a German competing for wins and championships. This is fueled by/or the reason for (I don't really know) TV stations only covering sports when Germans are competitive.
Tennis: In the Becker/Graf/Stich era you could watch tennis matches almost every day on TV, after they were not around anymore, it declined more and more. Today you can only watch three Grand Slams (Wimbledon only on Sky) and some WTA tournaments on Eurosport (which is not even a German TV station).
Ski jumping: Some 10/15 years ago when Germany had two very successful competitors (Schmitt/Hannawald) everybody became obsessed with the sport. Even RTL got the rights and promoted minor events like they were a Champions League final. Today RTL abandoned it and you can only watch it…on Eurosport and ARD.
F1: Schumacher obviously made the sport big over here. Everybody watched the races on RTL (obviously with a lot of commercials, like your ITV) and RTL mainly focused on how Schumi was doing. Everybody was walking around wearing some sort of Ferrari/MSC merchandise. After he left in 2006 viewing figures dropped, no one cared about Ferrari anymore not even Vettel improved interest for some reason that elude me.
What I’m trying to say is that German people (pathetically) mostly don’t care about a sport (except football of course) in general but about German athletes. So I guess if there is going to be another Boris Becker we will be drowning in tennis broadcasts again over here. Ferrari leaving the sport would not make a big difference for the average German F1 "fan".
The average German only cares about a certain sport, when there is a German competing for wins and championships. This is fueled by/or the reason for (I don't really know) TV stations only covering sports when Germans are competitive.
Tennis: In the Becker/Graf/Stich era you could watch tennis matches almost every day on TV, after they were not around anymore, it declined more and more. Today you can only watch three Grand Slams (Wimbledon only on Sky) and some WTA tournaments on Eurosport (which is not even a German TV station).
Ski jumping: Some 10/15 years ago when Germany had two very successful competitors (Schmitt/Hannawald) everybody became obsessed with the sport. Even RTL got the rights and promoted minor events like they were a Champions League final. Today RTL abandoned it and you can only watch it…on Eurosport and ARD.
F1: Schumacher obviously made the sport big over here. Everybody watched the races on RTL (obviously with a lot of commercials, like your ITV) and RTL mainly focused on how Schumi was doing. Everybody was walking around wearing some sort of Ferrari/MSC merchandise. After he left in 2006 viewing figures dropped, no one cared about Ferrari anymore not even Vettel improved interest for some reason that elude me.
What I’m trying to say is that German people (pathetically) mostly don’t care about a sport (except football of course) in general but about German athletes. So I guess if there is going to be another Boris Becker we will be drowning in tennis broadcasts again over here. Ferrari leaving the sport would not make a big difference for the average German F1 "fan".
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