It is not that straight forward. While it is true that F1 demands absurd sums from TV stations to allow filming / broadcasting, on the flip side there are the sponsors and their demands for high viewer numbers. So if F1 stopped demanding such ridiculous sums from TV stations they could compensate that lost income due to the sport becoming more attractive to sponsors based on the increased viewer count.
Jones, Coulthard, Edwards, McKenzie, Chandhok [though he does media stuff for Williams so would be there already, likewise DiResta at Sky]. Plus camera crew, sound crew, etc. etc. So more than the 3 guys and an iPhone you make it out to be. Also Channel 4 [technically] sends no-one to any of the races. Whisper Films do [and did for the BBC too].
Given the events surrounding Daniel Hegarty and how many races had to be red flagged I'd reckon the Macau track will finally lose FIA approval.
To be fair, motorbikes on city tracks was always stupid, and i wondered why it was allowed in the first place.
As long as the Chinese keep spending enough to build an aircraft carrier and fill it with planes gambling there every year it will keep it's place. The TT kills one or two riders every year and we still go there too, it's one of those freaky events that seems untouchable. They're non-championship events anyway and a bunch of the top GT teams didn't bother going this year, after that race I imagine all the Mclaren boys sitting around in Woking laughing their asses off.
40% of the track it is impossible to overtake, there is a turn so stupid it requires a permanently waved yellow flag, multiple races red flagged every year... it just seems excessive to me. China is big, surely they can find a place better suited to racing.
Sounds a bit like Monaco then... and is probably [still] on the calendars for exactly the same reasons.
China has a shed load of racetracks, Beijing and Zhuhai have two tracks each, a permanent one and a street circuit each with pit buildings for big stuff like LMP1. The Zhuhai tracks are also less than an hour's drive from Macau, the trouble is none of these tracks are located in Macau, which is one of a very few places in China where gambling, betting and casinos are legal. It's basically Chinese Monte Carlo.
Apparently Kubica has signed a 2 year contract http://www.nextgen-auto.com/Doornbos-happy-to-see-Kubica-back-in-F1,122457.html
Would rather see Stroll out than Massa. Thanks to that mechanical DNF in Baku and the puncture in Mexico Stroll is somehow going to finish the season near level on points with Massa, despite averaging almost 1sec per lap slower than him at every race except Baku, Canada and Monza. At Monza he was only half a second slower.
Just what F1 needed - MOAR TYRE COMPOUNDS!! Honestly, "Super Hard" has got to be joke, right? Even if you ignore the stupid name, nobody used the hard tyre this year... Between Pirelli's shenanigans, the Halo and more and more crap tracks worming their way onto the calendar, I'm starting to question if I can be bothered any more.
Especially considering half the compounds barely featured this season and despite the third compound we barely saw many deviation from the softest 2 compounds. When we did there appeared to be little to no difference in performance apart from driver confidence
Ferrari Veto the 5 engine rule for next year. This is the reason I freakin hate Ferrari. It makes no sense. I have hated them for ages so the whole why do we need Ferrari debate falls on deaf ears for me, I don't care if they are the most successful, its the shitty ideology that comes with them and their controlling manner that winds me up. Oh we are the most successful so therefore F1 is Ferrari...nope.... I think F1 would be a much much better affair without them, I just wish the powers that be would see that. Half the time it seems they only win because they bend the rules to suit themselves. ie Vettel slamming Hamilton for no reason and walking off scot free
Yea tho I'd say the bias is a Vettel thing rather than a Ferrari. Red Bull have been favourites while Ferrari wandered in the wilderness and I reckon Hamilton garnered favour with Bernie the last few years of his era. The sport is full of bias (makes me wonder the dynamics of the drivers meetings). The engine conundrum is the same problem from Bernie's era. F1 needs a clear direction and asking people what they want and need is one thing, you don't let the kids make the rules for the family.
Can we just get to the actual show and give the public what they want.....Kubica doing anything involving an F1 car? He doesn't have to race, in fact he could walk round the track and it would be more of an event than this