Motorsport

By Jonathan Gill

11th August 2007

	We need something to shuffle the order of the cars to create really exciting racing

Flavio Briatore, the flamboyant boss of reigning Formula One champ Ren­ault, has called for chiefs to spice up the on-track action. It’s not the first time the Italian (right) has demanded more entertainment for the fans, but with new regulations currently being discussed for 2011 and beyond, the timing of his latest outburst is significant.

“At the moment, the model of an F1 weekend is simple,” he said. “We spend two days sorting the cars, then we put the quickest ones at the front and the slowest at the back through qualifying. We send them out to race, and then hope that the slower ones magically become faster, and vice versa, to produce overtaking!

“Even if we make it easier to over­take, we still need something else to shuffle the order to create exciting racing. When the rain comes, it introduces the chaos you need to jumble things up. Perhaps we should look at ways of achieving that on a more regular basis.” As one possible solution, Briatore points to the F1 feeder series, GP2, which stages two rounds over the course of a race weekend. There, the top eight finishers from the first heat line up in reverse order for the second showdown.

“It means the quick drivers have to fight their way past the slower ones,” he explained. “And we need to be open-minded in how we approach the structure of the race weekend. Some aspects of the sport are essential elements of its DNA, but perhaps there aren’t as many as people think...“

However, Briatore claims there is good dialogue – and some consensus – between the teams, as well as governing body the FIA, regarding the sport’s future. He added: “There are four goals we need to achieve with these new rules: make sure F1 stays at the pinnacle of motorsport, reduce costs, become more environmentally aware and improve the show. That is what we are working towards.”

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