In the final segment of our interview with John Watson, originally recorded forhttp://speed.com, John looks back at the changes that have taken place since his F1 debut in 1973 and talks about the drivers for which he has the most respect. Can Michael Schumacher win again? John has definite views. For a complementary photo album to his video, together with detailed captions, log on to:
http://photos.speedtv.com/gallery/F1_The_Windsor_Journals_John_Watson
In the second segment of our three-part interview with John Watson, MBE, originally recorded for http://speed.com, John looks back at his two sensational USGP wins for Marlboro McLaren – at Detroit, in 1982 and then Long Beach in 1983 – and reflects upon his love for Watkins Glen. He also talks about the art of overtaking – something at which he excelled throughout his career. To see a complementary photo album to this video, together with detailed captions, log on to http://speed.com/thewindsorjournals
In the first segment of our three-part interview with John Watson, MBE, recorded originally for http://speed.com, we talk about his early years in F2 and F1, including his time with Penske Racing: replacing the late Mark Donohue, he won the Austrian GP exactly 12 months after Mark’s tragic loss. To see a photo album tied to this segment, with detailed captions, log on to http://speed.com/thewindsorjournals
In the final segment of our four-part interview with the Team Principal of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, Martin Whitmarsh, we look back at that brilliant win for Jenson Button in Canada; and, with changes already taking place in the aero department at McLaren (the departure of John Iley, plans for a new wind tunnel at the MTC), we look ahead to 2012
In the third of our four-part conversation we conducted for http://www.Speed.com with the Team Principal of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, Martin Whitmarsh, we talk about “The Product” – the F1 “show” in its latest form – and about the 2011 season: with three wins apiece, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton helped VMM to second place in both World Championships.
Queries from some of you suggest that the “less is more” catchphrase needs some explanation. Basically, it is the mantra that has governed F1’s public profile for at least the past 20 years. If you’d asked anyone near the top of the F1 economy any of the following questions –
“Why is there no F1 programming on TV over the winter months?” or “Why do the F1 drivers not make themselves available to the fans the way they do in NASCAR?” or “Why do we not see more of the ‘classic’ F1 drivers and cars at F1 events?” or “Why do we not see re-runs of classic races on prime time TV?” or “Why don’t we have the occasional, one-off, non-championship race for charity?” or “Why doesn’t F1 work the media in new-frontier countries prior to racing there?” or “Why isn’t F1 more widely available on the internet?” or “Why don’t we have all the F1 drivers doing charity karting events on a regular basis?” or “Why don’t F1 drivers compete in other forms of motor sport?” or “Why, when we have it, is testing not better publicised and televised?” or “Why do we not see more of the F1 teams’ telemetry and data?” or “Why doesn’t F1 have a media and PR department comparable with NASCAR’s?”
– the answer, in the recent, medium and distant past, would always have been “because we don’t want to over-expose F1. Less is more. The less we give the fans, the more they’ll be thirsty to watch the races….”
Personally, I’ve always had my doubts about that ethos, although the statistics – 600m cumulative TV viewers every year – may say that I was wrong to think that way. What we’ll never know, of course, is how many people would be watching F1 races on TV if it had adopted a NASCAR-like approach to the public and to the media. Maybe it would be 300m; maybe it would now be 1bn; we’ll never know.
What we do know is that luminaries like Martin Whitmarsh now believe that it’s time to scrap the “less is more” philosophy and to exploit the full richness of F1 in all its aspects: in recent years, too many other sports and entertainments have captured the imagination of the public; and massive amounts of information and clear access have become too readily available on the internet.
In my interview with Martin he makes it clear that this is his opinion and not that of the F1 industry as a whole; times are changing, however – and Martin’s views provide a good litmus test of perhaps where F1 may be heading.
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