By ZECH YODER
The madness of Formula 1
I am a Formula 1 fan. I like the cars. I like the circuits. I like the format.
But Formula 1 has drifted far off course, despite the perceived increase in popularity throughout the United States. If the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) does not discover a workable, long-term solution, Formula 1’s collapse is inevitable.
The money problem
Formula 1 has a money problem. It’s not that they don’t have enough. It’s that they cannot get enough.
Despite regulations creating spending caps and restricting the amount of money teams may spend, the FIA and Formula 1 teams make exceptional compromises to generate additional profits. Given the recent addition of races in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Russia (though to its credit, Russia was taken off the calendar after the invasion of Ukraine), the FIA has platformed and legitimized despotic and tyrannical governments and leaders. This was most recently observed when the Formula 1 race proceeded in Qatar one day after the horrific attacks on Israel by Hamas while the Qatari government harbored the leadership of Hamas.
Indeed, the FIA and Formula 1 continue making grand gestures of diversity, equity, and inclusion (which is another topic for another day) yet take millions of dollars from governments that openly despise such perspectives.
The sustainability problem
The FIA has bought in, whole cloth, to the “green ideology” of climate change, which has fundamentally shifted the Formula 1 landscape. To be fair, the FIA may not have had much choice in the matter as European nations are aggressively implementing green ideology. Nevertheless, I believe the sustainability mantra has been detrimental to Formula 1.
At the forefront of the FIA’s green conscious initiatives was carbon emissions. In 2014, Formula 1 switched its engine regulations from naturally aspirated V-8s to turbo-charged Hybrid V-6s. This change led to a chasm in competition and was a leading factor in Mercedes utter dominance in the later 2010s. Given the new technology, manufacturer-backed teams outspent the smaller teams and monopolized success at the front of the grid.
Further, though it may seem trivial, the “eco-friendly” Hybrid V-6 engine lost the signature Formula 1 “scream.” Formula 1 has long been associated with the wild high-pitched shrill of small engines turning at high RPMs. The scream of the engines added an element of excitement, whether watching in-person or on television. Instead of a scream, the Hybrid V-6s managed nothing more than a hoarse whine as the electronic power associated generated by the hybrid engine eliminated the need for turning higher RPMs. Formula 1 fans are constantly complaining about the sterilized sound of the current engines. Heck, I say bring back V-12 engines of the mid-90s.
The competition problem
As alluded to above, since 2014, there has been a competition chasm in Formula 1. Mercedes won every constructors championship from 2014 to 2021 and Red Bull has won the last two. Though Formula 1 has always been somewhat top-end heavy, the last 10 years have been especially brutal. So far this year, Max Verstappen has won 17 of the 20 races and wrapped up the driver’s championship with six races left in the season.
Credit to Mercedes and Red Bull for doing their job, but Formula 1 cannot continue to support such a gap in competition. Fans love rivalry. To have rivalry, there must be competition. And the rivalry and competition must be at the front of the field. There are many great on-track battles in Formula 1 but when it is for sixth position, nobody cares.
The sport desperately needs parity. Right now, at least at the front of the grid, it has none.
Zech Yoder is a local resident, an attorney at Adler Attorneys in Noblesville, and a lifelong race fan.