138 replies to this topic

[August]

I don't know if that's unusual but I've seen recently a lot of comments here saying "Watching the Indian GP was just waste of the time, new circuits suck" whereas some other people say "The start of the season with crappy tyres was terrible, this isn't the F1 I once got interested in", and there are also comments like "Bernie is killing F1 by taking it away from classic venues".

But when will you have of F1? Or could that ever happen?

For me, motor racing itself isn't the reason why I watch F1 compared to e.g. tennis which I watch also because I like to play that game. That's why I'd still watch tennis even if I'd get fed up with ATP & WTA tours. But if I lost my interest in F1, I wouldn't have a similar reason to watch races. Soon after I started following F1, I got interested in the technical and business sides of the sport, and that unique combination of sport, technology, and business made F1 my favourite sport to follow for such a long time. But in the recent years, I think business has started to take too big a role in F1. Classic circuits are being abandoned to go to new places without F1 culture where they pay loads of money to get a race, and those new circuits are made to be spectator-friedly, compromising the challenge aspect of the circuit. And rules are made to enable passing (not overtaking) to get races interesting for masses instead of having real racing with overtaking. Besides, for commercial reasons, they've homologated the engines and went to single-spec tyres, both things I don't like about.

I think the business should be done so that the nature of F1's sporting and techincal side remain. But if business becomes even more important in the future, I think my interest in F1 will slowly vanish. But so that I'd suddenly stop following F1, there should be a massive scandal that'd take all the credibility from the sporting side, something like race fixing, possibly involving even FIA & FOM. (As if FIA's Ferrari favouritism isn't already that.) On the other hand, a collapse of F1 might do good for the sport if they could continue after it on a healthy ground.

[alframsey]

I feel very disillusioned with F1 at the moment if I am honest, I mean I am finding it very difficult to get as interested as I have been. I've always maintained a keen interest in the sport, even during the Schumi years, and have watched every race since I was about 8. However now I think I am starting to get extremely bored with it all, I mean at the start of the season I wasn't happy because McLaren were ****ing up left right and centre, now McLaren have sorted out their track side ops we are seeing them have mechanical issues and the car is off the pace. Now it seems Vettel and RBR have re-established themselves as the team to beat, it just is all very frustrating. Here is hoping for a better 2013 for McLaren.

[g1n]

I feel very disillusioned with F1 at the moment if I am honest, I mean I am finding it very difficult to get as interested as I have been. I've always maintained a keen interest in the sport, even during the Schumi years, and have watched every race since I was about 8. However now I think I am starting to get extremely bored with it all, I mean at the start of the season I wasn't happy because McLaren were ****ing up left right and centre, now McLaren have sorted out their track side ops we are seeing them have mechanical issues and the car is off the pace. Now it seems Vettel and RBR have re-established themselves as the team to beat, it just is all very frustrating. Here is hoping for a better 2013 for McLaren.

That is because you are a fanboy of just one team. Drop the fanboy nonsense and start to be a fan of the whole sport and you will enjoy it all a bit more.

[GSiebert]

I'll stop when the racing will be boring and fake, the tracks grey and castrated, the cars ugly and underpowered.
Oh wait i've already stopped watching.

[pdac]

Well, for me it's about the TV coverage. I'm just about tollerating the BBC coverage this year. I'm already starting to not bother too much with the 'highlights' races. If they start to make them shorter or show them at awkward times, or if the reduce the number of live races - that could be the straw that breaks the camels back.

I also am not peased with the way the regulations are becoming more and more intrusive and more and more fudged. For me one of the key aspects of F1 is that the cars are designed and built by the teams competing. However, I don't like the way the design restrictions are making them so formulaic. It seems that every time one team comes up with a clever idea that gives their car an advantage, the FIA steps in and bans it. But, also, they are so rubbish at descibing what they are banning that it ends up that the only thing that's banned is the original idea and all of the copies of the original concept that other teams come up with are okay.

[MoP]

I'll stop when the racing will be boring and fake, the tracks grey and castrated, the cars ugly and underpowered.
Oh wait i've already stopped watching.

I'm almost there almost....

[alframsey]

That is because you are a fanboy of just one team. Drop the fanboy nonsense and start to be a fan of the whole sport and you will enjoy it all a bit more.

I am unashamedly a McLaren fanboy. I do however also follow other drivers, Kimi is probably my favourite current driver but for some reason I just can't get as excited. I do appreciate the sport as a whole, I love seeing brilliant racing and two or more drivers battling over position regardless of the team they drive for. So don't come off with this bullshit that I am only interested when McLaren are winning, I've sat and watched every race for the last 15 years when McLaren have won all of 1 constructors titles and 3 drivers titles, in that time seeing my least favourite team dominate for years. I am a fan of Formula 1 and always will be, that however doesn't mean I have to enjoy every single season.

EDIT: Having read over my initial post I realise how it could have appeared I was a McLaren fan only and only happy or interested when they win.

Edited by alframsey, 29 October 2012 - 10:33.

[ayali]

That is because you are a fanboy of just one team. Drop the fanboy nonsense and start to be a fan of the whole sport and you will enjoy it all a bit more.

THIS ^^^^^

Too many team/driver fanboys here, so there's always a faction whining when their team/man isn't winning.

[Longtimefan]

The day I drop dead, not before.

F1 might be a very pale shadow of its former self but still, its 'usually' worth watching.

[Shiroo]

Doesn't matter how F1 looks nowdays. We can cry a river about things that we do not like, but as real fans, we will be commited to it as long as it exist (or we are alive).

[HPT]

In short, never. Like ever. I've seen the "abomination" of F1, the rule changes, the scandals and the "boring" years of Ferrari domination and I've enjoyed them all, even though I really disliked Schumacher and Ferrari at that time. Hence, I can't think of a single situation where I'll stop watching F1.

[spacekid]

I'll stop when the racing will be boring and fake, the tracks grey and castrated, the cars ugly and underpowered.
Oh wait i've already stopped watching.

This ^. In conjunction with the crazy amount of money Bernie/Sky think I should be paying to watch its alerady happening. I'll watch a bit now if its on, but I've gone from being someone who would watch every quali/race no matter what time it is on to... meh, race this weekend? I'll try to catch the highlights, maybe.

And its not just 'fanboy crying'. I couldn't care less who wins as long as I enjoy the racing. But a tyre company that contrives to create multiple winners and the confusion between using DRS to drive past another car and 'overtaking' have meant this form of racing does not appeal to me in the way it used to. I think the final straw for me is that racing is no longer allowed without having to have investigations/penalties for literally everything, with wildly different sanctions depending on circumstaces.

There are other forms of racing I still enjoy watching.

Edited by spacekid, 29 October 2012 - 10:59.

[HuddersfieldTerrier1986]

I don't think I'll ever stop watching.

[MrMontecarlo]

This ^. In conjunction with the crazy amount of money Bernie/Sky think I should be paying to watch its alerady happening. I'll watch a bit now if its on, but I've gone from being someone who would watch every quali/race no matter what time it is on to... meh, race this weekend? I'll try to catch the highlights, maybe.

And its not just 'fanboy crying'. I couldn't care less who wins as long as I enjoy the racing. But a tyre company that contrives to create multiple winners and the confusion between using DRS to drive past another car and 'overtaking' have meant this form of racing does not appeal to me in the way it used to. I think the final straw for me is that racing is no longer allowed without having to have investigations/penalties for literally everything, with wildly different sanctions depending on circumstaces.

There are other forms of racing I still enjoy watching.

Just for the sake of curiosity, which forms of racing do you still watch?

[Desdirodeabike]

When F1 goes electric..

[Tardis40]

November 26, 2012

[Peat]

But a tyre company that contrives to create multiple winners and the confusion between using DRS to drive past another car and 'overtaking' have meant this form of racing does not appeal to me in the way it used to.

THIS ^.

It's like they made the toffee tyres and we got silly random races and Pirelli were 'It's great isnt it? It's so random, that's what you asked for, right?'. When the answer was 'er, not exactly' and since every driver started slating the tyres, they have produced a tyre (mid season!) that just goes on and on and on. All it's done is highlight that the 'formula' is still very much broken.

And then to show multiple replays of DRS overtakes as if they are some kind of marvel, and the seemingly obligatory shot of Christian Horner's twitching ankle...........Thanks, but no thanks. I'll go and watch some actual motor racing instead of the pantomime.

I'm out.

[Anderis]

I'll stop watching F1 when I die (or lose my sense of sight).

Don't know. My favourite drivers and teams rarely win anything and I've started to follow F1 closely during overboring 2007 season so for me it really needs much to become less exciting than I'm accustomed.

Maybe I would struggle for passion for some time if Williams exits F1, but most likely I would find another team to follow.

[joshb]

So as soon as Vettel/RB start winning, these topics crop up.
Coincidence?

If you don't want to watch it, turn it off.

[BullHead]

The migration of UK coverage to Sky has done it's best to put me off, but so far hasn't succeeded. If those in charge make it any more difficult for me to watch live action it might well have more effect on my once obsessive viewing attitude.

As for the sport itself, Indy 2005 nearly did it, If I can put up with that I can put up with pretty much anything, car parks, daft rules, gimmicks, etc.

[stanga]

So as soon as Vettel/RB start winning, these topics crop up.
Coincidence?

If you don't want to watch it, turn it off.

Err... thanks for that.

Personally, I don't like any sport where it feels like there is little competition. I enjoyed the start of the season even though my favourite drivers weren't doing too well because it felt quite open. Now it's just starting to feel a bit too much like the yawnfest that was 2011.

[Fourjays]

Probably never. I appreciate the rules, the cars, the tracks, the drivers and the racing for what it is. Sometimes it is boring, sometimes it is awesome, just like most motorsport.

Having watched a lot of the season reviews recently, I think a lot of people view past F1 seasons with extremely rose-tinted glasses. There were good aspects, but just like now there were bad aspects. Like cars so unreliable that no matter how quick a driver was really didn't matter. Or refuelling that promoted sitting and waiting for the pit stops in a game of "who has an extra lap of fuel" rather than racing on track. Or seasons where a car was so dominant that reliability was everybody else's only hope of a win. Or worse of all, the high rate of injuries and fatalities.

My only complaints at the moment really are the "must use both compounds" rule left over from the "never worn out" Bridgestones, that racing incidents always have to have blame apportioned, and that there is currently no better way to balance safety with "punishment" for going off track short of disqualifying drivers instantly for exceeding track limits.

I also think a lot of people forget how technology and general advancement has effected things. Technology and team procedures have evolved over the years to a point where almost every team is producing a near perfect weekend, every weekend. The mistakes, unreliability and guesswork that produced much of the supposed "excitement" "back in the day" have been practically eliminated. If anything, it is now more about the cars and drivers than it ever has been.

Edited by Fourjays, 29 October 2012 - 11:52.

[muramasa]

Maybe never, but I'd surely not pay as much attention and focus if F1 become like Indycar or GP2. This technical depth - every team building their own car, race by race development, etc, is big draw for me.

If it become spec series or near-spec series, I'd mostly check results only and watch races occasionally when I feel like it, and probably never participate online forums like this board.

[hotstickyslick]

I'll stop when the racing will be boring and fake, the tracks grey and castrated, the cars ugly and underpowered.
Oh wait i've already stopped watching.

[BlackCat]

i've promised myself i'll stop watching when F1 gets the next posthumous world champion - as i started following f1 in 1969 and was a Rindt fan...

[Andy Davies]

The migration of UK coverage to Sky has done it's best to put me off, but so far hasn't succeeded. If those in charge make it any more difficult for me to watch live action it might well have more effect on my once obsessive viewing attitude.

As for the sport itself, Indy 2005 nearly did it, If I can put up with that I can put up with pretty much anything, car parks, daft rules, gimmicks, etc.

The move of coverage from BBC to Sky has largely resulted in me not watching F1 anymore - watch the odd live race, hardly ever watch the highlights, check the Autosport forums less often.

Andy

[ayali]

Probably never. I appreciate the rules, the cars, the tracks, the drivers and the racing for what it is. Sometimes it is boring, sometimes it is awesome, just like most motorsport.

This exactly ^^^

Good post in it's entirety, agree with most of it

[Lights]

I don't think I will stop watching because of the evolution of the sport. It goes in the direction it goes. For some reason I found F1 entertaining in the early noughties with 25% of the coverage and access that there is now, with Ferrari domination and predictable races. It's definitely not any worse now. I'll always have my favorite and not so favorite drivers, and since I started watching I've hardly ever been happy with the WDC, but that's just a matter of sucking it up. And if I would be on the fence about watching it or not, I don't think I'd visit this forum either.

[pacificquay]

I'll never stop.

[Atreiu]

Most likely never, but there have some occasions in which my interest was very strained.
I'm not much a fan of the current formula Pirelli.

[Steve99]

Personally, I don't like any sport where it feels like there is little competition. I enjoyed the start of the season even though my favourite drivers weren't doing too well because it felt quite open. Now it's just starting to feel a bit too much like the yawnfest that was 2011.

Anyone with any sense would expect, by the last third of the season, the order to have become established. Also, if you found 2011 a 'yawnfest' I would suggest F1 is not for you.

[zachary2142]

When it'll become boring for me.

[August]

So as soon as Vettel/RB start winning, these topics crop up.
Coincidence?

If you don't want to watch it, turn it off.

I didn't open this thread only because of boring Indian GP. And that GP would've been boring even if somebody else had been driving Seb's car.

I opened this thread because I've noticed quite much complaints here, and personally, I had very little interest in F1 during this summer, Canada and Valencia were the most terrible races this year, those races were won by who had the best tires in the finish. Luckily we've had races like Korea which was more typical an F1 race.

[Sanman59]

I'll never stop.

Too right mate - I have been watching FI since 1970. There are many ebbs and flows and some seasons are more interesting than others. You just have to roll with it. As long as F1 remains the pinnacle of Motor Sport, I'll be here!

[John Player]

I'll never stop.

[Fastcake]

Spec series. That's pretty much the limit for me.

[Scotracer]

November 26, 2012

My birthday. How kind of you to remember

[bongofury]

November 26, 2012

+1.

I have already given Sky notice to cancel the HD package and I have no intention of paying £10 per month from next March purely to watch F1. I have been toying with this all year, but the last 3 races have nailed it for me. I don't find it interesting enough to give up 3 hours (minimum) for 18 or so weekends per year.

Maybe I've just found other priorities in my life...?

[Frank Tuesday]

I don't know that I'll ever stop, though my interest may ebb and flow. I started watching in the late 80's. First it was a few races, which quickly turned into every race, then qualifying. Then I discovered AtlasF1 and rec.autos.sport.f1, and everything F1 was at my fingertips. I ready every single article, studied the results of every single test session.

I remember the tears of happiness streaming down my face listening to Sennas radio after he won at Interlagos. I remember the heartbreak when Barrichello's car retired at Donington, robbing my beloved team their first podium. I remember my disappointment at the introduction of the safety car, because in my eyes, the purity of the sport was compromised. I remember the intense sadness after Imola. I remember running onto the track in Montreal, celebrating Alesi's first win, and being inches from the Jordans, still on the track trying to return to the pits. I remember sitting in the pouring rain, overlooking Eau Rouge, arguing before the race with a fellow fan whether Hill(him) or Schumacher(me) was better. At the end, we celebrated together because his man, and my team had won. I remember jumping the fence at Monza with the Tifosi, trying to get to the podium to celebrate a Ferarri 1-2. I remember Barrichello, my favorite driver for many years, finally getting his first victory at Hockenheim. I was happy, but I felt cheated because he won because of the safety car, gifting him time that, in my eyes, wasn't his. I remember a press conference ending in tears.

The second half of my love of F1 has many memories, but they don't have the same resonance as these. As with all things, the intensity of emotion peaks, and then drops away. I love my wife more now that at any time before, but the intensity of young love is a powerful thing. The first time your eyes meet, the first date, the first kiss, the first time you see her naked. None of those emotions are love, but they are very powerful. And so it is with F1. In 25 years, you expect things to change. In some ways, I miss the F1 of my youth, but what is it that I really miss?

I miss the simple, clean lines of the cars. I miss the design freedom and innovation from less restrictive regulation. I miss the old tracks. I miss the drivers from that era. I miss all of those things, but all of those things can be said of any era. None are specific to the late '80s. Had I started watching in the '50s, '60s, '70s, '90s or '00s, I'd still have those same feelings. F1 has never been, and never will be, perfect. So what is missing from F1 today? Just one thing: The intensity of emotion that can only come with something new.

[Rob]

I usually watch the F1 but bikes have priority now.

[Tuxy]

It's hard to appreciate Formula 1 as a spectator sport without some kind of catch. Call it fanboyism but I am a Ferrari supporter and their success directly impacts my level of interest.

I don't think there's anything wrong with that. I've been watching since 1998, and to be honest, the aspects of the sport that drew me in at the beginning don't really have the same appeal anymore.

I used to enjoy looking out for new bits teams would bolt on their cars which is fun because sometimes it's very obvious and it translates into performance on the track. Other times it's about acknowledging how clever teams are about interpreting the rules, but depending on which team you have a personal stake in, that can be a love-hate thing.

The only formula for me moving forward that would excite me about F1 now is to open up the regulations. Give teams free-reign to innovate with technology and have it tie-back to domestic road vehicles. Safety, fuel economy, performance, reliability, anything, everything.

Introduce a budget cap, figure out how to enforce it, and let any team race what they bring to the track. Mandate very clear specifications inside an imaginary box, does your car fit into this box? Yes, ok your good. Do away with these stupid wing flex tests etc.

If the sport stagnates or does not deliver an entertaining experience, why should I sit through it? Nothing should be sacred in the pursuit of speed? KERS, hell yeah. Covered-wheels? Sure why not. Turbo v6's? Tell you what, you can use jet engines...

Edited by Tuxy, 29 October 2012 - 13:36.

[johnmhinds]

I doubt i'll ever stop being interested in the results, i'm just too invested in the sport and the F1 community at this point (probably like most of the people in this thread).

But the recent switch to Sky has defiantly put me off watching/listening to every single session like I used to.
The sports promoters clearly don't care about us fans anymore so i'm not going to care about them.

The Pirelli tyres were a complete joke earlier in the season, but it's the drab hazy back to back bore fest of the Korean and Indian races has really killed any interest I had in this season.

The sport has lost its way and i'm not looking forward to another snoozefest of a Abu Dhabi race.

Edited by johnmhinds, 29 October 2012 - 13:37.

[jstrains]

I did not watch all races last year because of Vettel dominance, maybe if I were his fan I would. I hope that Vettel s dominance from the last races will not continue into 2013

[TFLB]

I'll stop when it goes electric. I love internal combustion engines.

[OoxLox]

I don't stop watching altogether, but in 2003-2004 there were a lot of races I didn't bother to watch live because I already knew who was going to win. I managed all but two live races last season, but if the current RBR dominance carries on into next year I'll be back at 2004 levels - watching favourite tracks only. Dominance by anyone is bad for the sport, and even as a McLaren fan I got pretty bored and stopped watching at times in the 80s when the only question was which of their cars would win.

[jj2728]

Been following the sport since the early 1960s and I've seen alot. I see no reason whatsoever to stop following it now, good health provided of course.

[PorcupineTroy]

If every track became as sanitzed as Abu Dhabi or Bahrain I would likely stop watching. Otherwise, I'm in it for life.

[darkkis]

...(if) all the finnish drivers disappear. Also it could happen if F1 would lose it's speed advantage over other series. V6 and loss of some aerodynamics is a step into that direction...

[Longtimefan]

I'll stop when it goes electric. I love internal combustion engines.

Very good point and I agree, I could never watch that.

[stanga]

Anyone with any sense would expect, by the last third of the season, the order to have become established. Also, if you found 2011 a 'yawnfest' I would suggest F1 is not for you.

You mean like in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010? Please.

2011 was the dullest season since I returned to F1 after the Schumacher years.