| Formula One is often touted as the cutting edge | | | | because money has been so tight. |
| of motor sports because of the incredibly | | | | Formula One is in danger of going down this path |
| technology and, frankly, money spent in | | | | as well. Legendary designer Adrian Newey is |
| developing it. That being said, one has to suggest | | | | threatening to leave the sport if the trend |
| F1 is losing a bit of its luster. | | | | continues. No less than Sir Frank Williams has also |
| NASCAR used to be a bit more exciting to me | | | | warned the championship is losing its soul to the |
| for one reason. You could tell the makes and | | | | cost cutting measure. The interesting thing about |
| models of the car apart. A Pontiac looked like a | | | | Williams' warning is he is a privateer who would |
| Pontiac. A Chevrolet looked like a Chevrolet. Then | | | | benefit greatly by more standardization of the |
| someone got the bright idea to save money and | | | | sport since his modest budget would go farther. |
| make the races fairer by creating a single | | | | Williams has always been a wise voice in the |
| template the cars all had to use. It saved no | | | | crowd, so perhaps his statements should not be |
| money and didn't make anything fairer, but it did | | | | such a surprise. |
| take away some of the individuality of the sport. | | | | The approach being taken to standardizing the |
| In short, it was a development for the worse and | | | | cars in Formula One is wrong through and through. |
| Formula One seems to be following the same | | | | The idea of cutting costs makes ultimate sense, |
| path. | | | | but not in the way the FIA is approaching it. |
| The economic crisis is causing Formula One teams | | | | Instead of standardizing certain areas of the car, |
| to band together to cut costs. That is a noble | | | | the teams should be allowed to spend any |
| and, frankly, necessary goal. That being said, the | | | | amount on whatever they wish on the car. If that |
| teams are eliminating a lot of areas of | | | | amount is over some stated amount, the team |
| development on the car, which means innovation | | | | will be "fined" the excessive amount and the |
| is really going out the window in many ways. One | | | | money will go to the privateer teams who must |
| needs only look at the hideous 2009 cars to | | | | spend it on car development. |
| notice something rather interesting and scary - | | | | This creates a soft cap for the sport while helping |
| they are starting to look like Indy Cars. | | | | the privateers stay and prosper. If Ferrari wants |
| Open wheel racing in the United States has | | | | to spend $400 million on their car, let them. Just |
| obviously gone through a rough period. Guns in | | | | make them kick in $100 million to be split |
| each hand, it proceeded to shoot itself in the feet | | | | between Force India, Williams and so on. This will |
| repeatedly during the split between the Indy | | | | make the sport competitive, keep the teams |
| Racing League and Cart/Champ/Whatever. It | | | | alive and let cost cutting reach a natural plateau. |
| wiped open wheel racing off the map and, but for | | | | More importantly, this will let the technical |
| Danica Patrick, none of us would really care much | | | | innovation remain a part of Formula One. Since |
| about the sport. The IRL "won" the war and the | | | | that is what makes the sport stand out, it makes |
| sport is finally united again, but the teams have | | | | little sense to kill innovation off with unnecessary |
| barely developed a car in fifteen years or so | | | | rules and regulations. |