25 replies to this topic

[pppf1]

It is time for a new podium celebration format. Bernie and Max have mucked up the qualifying and race rules so now they should direct their skills to the post race celebration. How many years have we watched drivers stand uncomfortably on the steps next to stiff local officials while the assorted national anthems droned on. The podium has produced some great moments over the years, especially during the Nige/Piquet and the Prost/Senna years. Who didn’t love to see Nige wince and toter on the brink of self-exhaustion? When of all people, Schumacher, tried to liven up the procedure by conducting the “orchestra” during the Italian national anthem, he was reprimanded for being disrespectful. But these moments are very few and far between. Enough with the rigid nationalist format. The constructor’s national anthem, who cares? F1 should think about moving the drivers closer to the crowd and making the whole post race event less stiff and formal. For the TV viewer the whole process is dead air. Time for a change.

[BorderReiver]

Can't see a problem with it myself. It's been going on a while now, and it's got links with a great many other branches of motorsport.

Slight over-reaction?

[F1 Tor.]

I hear you can hire Hooter girls for cheap. Maybe they can distribute the trophies in wet t-shirts and then roll around in chocolate with the 3 drivers. Then, every 2 minutes you throw in a team boss like Ron, Flavio, or, god forbid, Jean Todt.;) I have way too much time on my hands.

[pppf1]

The wreaths were great, but disappeared when the drivers overalls carried increasingly more sponsorship.

[F1 Tor.]

Aren't wreaths mainly used on horses?

[tifosi]

Originally posted by F1 Tor.
I hear you can hire Hooter girls for cheap. Maybe they can distribute the trophies in wet t-shirts and then roll around in chocolate with the 3 drivers. Then, every 2 minutes you throw in a team boss like Ron, Flavio, or, god forbid, Jean Todt.;) I have way too much time on my hands.

Although F1 has been in the US for a few years now so I'm sure by now Flav has had most of the Hooters chics.

[scheivlak]

Good old days: http://www.forix.com...83/02_po_dy.jpg
;)
Mentioned in http://forums.atlasf...ighlight=podium

[BRG]

I would happily trade the podium for some genuine, spontaneous delight by the winner (and that doesn't mean Michael's meticulously practised and choreographed leap-for-joy, or the usual glowers and frowns from the others who sometimes look like someone just told them their pet dog has died).

How about a victory lap, preferably with some doughnuts and flag-waving, followed by plenty of team hugs in the pitlane, and then the winner carried shoulder high to the nearest bar, where he gets a round in for the whole team. The press conference could be done with the winner sitting on the bar as his mechanics pour pints of beer over his head. Well, that's how they did it in the 1960s...

[jcbc3]

Then it must SURELY be the best way......

[Spunout]

Keep the current format. I am tired of endless bring back slicks/manual gears/old qualifying/whatever chanting.

[Bluesmoke]

I miss the days when drivers would drive around with their flags and fans would come down to the track to congradulate them.

[tifosi]

Originally posted by Spunout
Keep the current format. I am tired of endless bring back slicks/manual gears/old qualifying/whatever chanting.

Screw that, we should go back to the days when drivers changed there own tyres and refilled the friggin car. These guys today are total wimps.

[Buttoneer]

I reckon we should have WWF style microphone shouting matches.

Alonso would have come on to get his trophy to the tune of 'Fernando' by Abba. He skips over to Peter Windsor who says something like "Any words for the righning World Champ?" to which ferdy grabs the microphone and screams at the camera "Yeah! Here'sh another piesh of shilverware that weel never shee your cupboard! You're pasht it old man and I keeked your ass! Graaaaaar!!"

Schumie could come on to a riff by Rammstein. The one from The Matrix soundtrack would be good. "How about you Michael? Any words for the Spanish Fly?". Schumie could lean close to the camera and growl menacingly. "You got me this time, quite honestly, but don't think you're luck will hold, Spaniard. For sure I'll get you next time"

Button floats on combing his hair to 'Catch me if you can' by Louise. "How about it Button?" says Pete hoping for a sound bite. "Those suckers better not get complacent 'cos I'll be there next time and I wouldn't have been like a pussy trying to overtake Alonso. I'D HAVE HAD HIM OFF THE ROAD!"

Yeah.

Could be good.

[ensign14]

They should change the anthems to something a bit more street cred. Maybe "Shaddapa Ya Face" for Italy. "Games Without Frontiers" for Germany. "I Surrender" for France. "Def Con One" for any Americans. "Lazy Sunday" for Spain. "Simply The Best" for Britain. -flamingstartshere14

I like the Buttoneer approach. Nicknames for drivers. Raikkonen and Fizzy already have one. Michael "The Destroyer" Schumacher. "Fast" Freddie Alonso. "Outback Mac" Webber. Colonel Montoya. Nick "Silent Assassin" Heidfeld. "Mr" Klien. "Blaster" Barrichello. Jenson "The Terminator" Button (relating to his contracts). Tiger Taku. Jacques "The Second Coming" Villeneuve. "Flyin'" Felipe Massa.

Ferrari together could be the Destruction Crew. McLaren the Ice and Fire Warriors. Williams the Subversives. BARroom Brawlers. The Saubernators. Red Bull Rebels.

And you could have feuds within the grid. Jense puts Louise up for a bet with Taku. Coulthard puts his career on the line if he does not beat Massa at Spain. MS gets a public warning for rough driving. Briatore tells Fisi he is fired if he does not win another race.

Funny, I can see which of the above is the most unlikely...

[ASD]

Originally posted by F1 Tor.
I hear you can hire Hooter girls for cheap. Maybe they can distribute the trophies in wet t-shirts and then roll around in chocolate with the 3 drivers. Then, every 2 minutes you throw in a team boss like Ron, Flavio, or, god forbid, Jean Todt.;) I have way too much time on my hands.

The champagne spraying is just way too clear a Freudian metaphor for...

[nigel red5]

It amused me a year or two ago when Martin Brundle commented during yet another Schumacher podium celebration, that there will be a whole generation of kids who think the Italian national anthem starts off with a really slow dull bit, before waking up and being more up-tempo towards the end.

To be honest i like the podium the way it is now. Any gripe i have with it is a minor one, like why the anthems are almost moulded together these days. Whatever happened to "....and NOWWWW for the winning constructorrrr!"??

The other one that puzzles me is that there is a whole 12-bar introduction in the Italian national anthem that never seems to get played these days.. Now, i'm not Italian, so there's possibly a good reason for it not being played that i don't know about.. It's always puzzled me though.

One idea to possibly enhance the podium ceremony, would be to change the anthem from nationality to personal music.. eg, professional boxers when they walk into the ring.

If they were to do this, then the possibilities are endless.....

Kimi Raikkonen - The sound of silence...
Juan Pablo Montoya - Food glorious food
Rubens Barrichello - Lucky man
Michael Schumacher - Fly Schumi fly

Takuma could have that "turning japanese" ditty on the podium, that'd be good for a laugh!

[BorderReiver]

Originally posted by Spunout
Keep the current format. I am tired of endless bring back slicks/manual gears/old qualifying/whatever chanting.

Because some of them have merit?

[Scudetto]

Which ever driver throws their trophy the farthest from their spot on the podium gets to go out last in the next round of qualifying.

[BorderReiver]

Originally posted by Scudetto
Which ever driver throws their trophy the farthest from their spot on the podium gets to go out last in the next round of qualifying.

Surely the guy who came 3rd would have an unfair advantage then? I think the Grand Prix should just be a precursor to a Wresting Cage match that the top 3 finishers get to take part in. The winner of that has then won the event.

The only way of doing it. . .

[Spunout]

"Screw that, we should go back to the days when drivers changed there own tyres and refilled the friggin car. These guys today are total wimps."

So you are saying the mechanics are the real men of F1 racing now?

I though people wanted to ban tyre changes and refuelling?

[Spunout]

BorderReiver,

Point taken. But the thing is SOME of the changes (qualifying for example) were applauded by lots of people who have now started the traditional "bring back..." chant

If you ask the fans (= us, I suppose) the format keeps changing and changing but no one will ever be happy. Even if we go for WWF-style celebration format...

[BorderReiver]

Originally posted by Spunout
BorderReiver,

Point taken. But the thing is SOME of the changes (qualifying for example) were applauded by lots of people who have now started the traditional "bring back..." chant

If you ask the fans (= us, I suppose) the format keeps changing and changing but no one will ever be happy. Even if we go for WWF-style celebration format...

True, but what "new" Qualifying has given us with one hand it has taken away with the other. We now get to see every car do it's fast lap, fantastic, but they now do it in a sterile atmosphere (that, at the actual trackside itself is about as boring as Grand Prix racing can get).

Surely a better compromise between the two can be reached than the system we have at the moment. . .
I used to watch qualifying with relish, I could live with 40 minuits of dead track (in extreme cases) because I knew 20 minuits were going to be firecracker stuff. Now it's all something or a chore.

At least to me. . .

[xenna]

Originally posted by ensign14
They should change the anthems to something a bit more street cred. Maybe "Shaddapa Ya Face" for Italy. "Games Without Frontiers" for Germany. "I Surrender" for France. "Def Con One" for any Americans. "Lazy Sunday" for Spain. "Simply The Best" for Britain. -flamingstartshere14

I like the Buttoneer approach. Nicknames for drivers. Raikkonen and Fizzy already have one. Michael "The Destroyer" Schumacher. "Fast" Freddie Alonso. "Outback Mac" Webber. Colonel Montoya. Nick "Silent Assassin" Heidfeld. "Mr" Klien. "Blaster" Barrichello. Jenson "The Terminator" Button (relating to his contracts). Tiger Taku. Jacques "The Second Coming" Villeneuve. "Flyin'" Felipe Massa.

Ferrari together could be the Destruction Crew. McLaren the Ice and Fire Warriors. Williams the Subversives. BARroom Brawlers. The Saubernators. Red Bull Rebels.

And you could have feuds within the grid. Jense puts Louise up for a bet with Taku. Coulthard puts his career on the line if he does not beat Massa at Spain. MS gets a public warning for rough driving. Briatore tells Fisi he is fired if he does not win another race.

Funny, I can see which of the above is the most unlikely...

I hope the FIA is listening.

[beanoid]

Originally posted by Buttoneer
I reckon we should have WWF style microphone shouting matches.

Alonso would have come on to get his trophy to the tune of 'Fernando' by Abba. He skips over to Peter Windsor who says something like "Any words for the righning World Champ?" to which ferdy grabs the microphone and screams at the camera "Yeah! Here'sh another piesh of shilverware that weel never shee your cupboard! You're pasht it old man and I keeked your ass! Graaaaaar!!"

Schumie could come on to a riff by Rammstein. The one from The Matrix soundtrack would be good. "How about you Michael? Any words for the Spanish Fly?". Schumie could lean close to the camera and growl menacingly. "You got me this time, quite honestly, but don't think you're luck will hold, Spaniard. For sure I'll get you next time"

Button floats on combing his hair to 'Catch me if you can' by Louise. "How about it Button?" says Pete hoping for a sound bite. "Those suckers better not get complacent 'cos I'll be there next time and I wouldn't have been like a pussy trying to overtake Alonso. I'D HAVE HAD HIM OFF THE ROAD!"

Yeah.

Could be good.

Good one. You very nearly made me squirt water out of my nose due to spontaneous, explosive laughing.

[swaction]

I say bring back the bunch of leaves around the winners neck!

and HUGE trophies!!!

[sinfield]

I want to see Zanardi style doughnuts, but with engines being so precious I guess thats a tad unlikely....!

Rob