If Ferrari left would you still watch F1 the same?Formula 1

[mustafur]

Just want to see how much Ferrari has viewing power when it comes to users on GTP.

*this poll obviously applies to those that currently watch F1.

 

[notsofast]

I could watch F1 without Ferrari but it would feel like something was missing. Ferrari is such a big part of F1 that it would be odd without them but the sport is bigger then any manufacturer so the sport would carry on without it.

 

[DesertPenguin]

They're not gonna leave, but if they ever actually did (which they won't), I'd still watch.

 

[TheElbows]

I would watch any form of F1 in which the driving competition was made better...through either Ferrari leaving or whatever. It is completely inconsequential which teams/manufacturers are running. I'd just rather see more teams competer properly --- if the "Heritage" payment removed helped F1 do that? All the better.

Keep in mind that Ferrari had a massive span of almost zero wins (I mean, at least a decade)...so it's not like they were bringing a lot of competition in that period. They weren't adding much to the racing until this year.

 

[EngieDiesel]

Me personally? Yeah, probably. I'm interested in anything that involves cars or car-shaped objects going fast, regardless of what badge is on them.

The tifosi make up a sizeable part of F1's fanbase though, even despite their lackluster performance over the years. There are certainly a few locations where the live attendance would be massively reduced without Ferrari supporters in the stands, and that loss of revenue would have a definite effect on the sport's overall health.

 

[ThrasherDBS]

I could watch F1 without Ferrari but it would feel like something was missing. Ferrari is such a big part of F1 that it would be odd without them but the sport is bigger then any manufacturer so the sport would carry on without it.

This sums up my feelings quite a bit. Ferrari has been around since Formula 1 became officially "a thing". If they left, we'd still have some tenured great teams like McLaren and Williams, but a pair of bright red cars stands out among the pack, and it would definitely feel like something is missing. Ferrari carries a lot of history with them.

 

[Jimlaad43]

As a not-a-Ferrari-fan, I couldn't care less whether they stayed or went. From a sporting point of view, Ferrari leaving would be great, as they can take their historic payment and rules veto away, meaning the rest of the teams get a fairer chance.

 

[Roo]

By about round 3 I would've forgotten Ferrari were ever in F1.

 

[Liquid]

The amount they bang on about their "F1 technology" and "F1 heritage" at a road car launch shows how much they need the sport as much as the sport apparently needs them.

 

[MustangManiac]

I am a die hard Ferrari fan, have been nearly 50 years, but I would watch anyway if they left...although I might cry

 

[Carbon_6]

The amount they bang on about their "F1 technology" and "F1 heritage" at a road car launch shows how much they need the sport as much as the sport apparently needs them.

The focus would soon shift. True, no other form of motorsport has the stage presence of F1, but Ferrari's presence away from F1 is more than capable of being self-sustaining without reference to the series.

Mercedes seem to manage just fine without blowing its F1-derived trumpet.

As for the poll, I'd still watch. Teams come and go, no denying it. It would be a huge shock to the system of course, but it's what the organisers do in the potential aftermath that's more important.

Nothing lasts forever.

 

[Robin]

I'm not a Ferrari fan whatsoever, I've been a Mercedes fan since the 90's when I started watching F1 (saw McLaren as basically Mercedes) so it wouldn't bother me either way.

However if you had asked me this question back in the era when Ferrari was dominating to the point of basically absurdity then maybe I would have been happy to see them go. You need to have some sort of challenge going on.

F1 does need it's anchor 'star' teams to legitimise the sport. If another big name followed them it would end up going down the path WRC did where they lost a ton of factory teams and the sport became a shadow of its former self.

It would be very different without them for sure, whether that's good or bad is really hard to say.

 

[GTPVenomZombie]

Of course. I would continue to watch. But it would be odd watching F1 without Ferrari. In the beginning anyway. The Ferarri F1's have always been an iconic part of F1 in my opinion.

 

[PzR Slim]

Wouldn’t bother me one bit. Might even give the smaller teams more of a chance. I think Ferrari overestimate their importance to modern F1. There’s no doubt to people of a certain age Ferrari are a very important team but with the new younger fans that Liberty Media are trying to attract, they are not so aware of F1’s history and therefore they probably see Mercedes and RBR as the important teams compared to the Ferrari’s and Williams of the F1 world.

 

[RACECAR]

I'd have to adjust as all the time I've watched F1, there's always been a pair of scarlet red F1 cars. It'll be odd at first but eventually, I'll get used to it.

It worth mentioning though that they can say it all they want, but its up to the board whether they do or not. Even then, its Ferrari making a quitting threat. Much like the few times Chevy threatened to quit NASCAR (as well as the announcement of a certain PC Sim): I'll believe it when I see it.

 

[GroupB]

Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

 

[NFSCARBON1]

I'd still watch it, but being a Ferrari fan I wouldn't be anywhere near as interested.

Ferrari is to F1 teams what Monaco is to F1 races

If they weren't there it wouldn't hurt the sport as such, but it would damage the grandeur of it.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Ferrari is to F1 teams what Monaco is to F1 races

Flashy but ultimately useless?

 

[daan]

Ferrari is to F1 teams what Monaco is to F1 races

An anachronism from a bygone age?

 

[NFSCARBON1]

An anachronism from a bygone age?

Flashy but ultimately useless?

Both equally valid points

 

[Simmpa]

I woulnd´t mind if some of the big teams left so we would see not just 2 teams in the top but maybe 5 teams, Ferrari are having tantrums because they know they are totally screwed if they have to have same budget as the smaller teams.

 

[TenEightyOne]

I woulnd´t mind if some of the big teams left so we would see not just 2 teams in the top but maybe 5 teams, Ferrari are having tantrums because they know they are totally screwed if they have to have same budget as the smaller teams.

Surely the division of prize money would have to change - otherwise the top 2 of the 5 teams will very soon be the biggest teams.

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

Ferrari wont leave though, at least not any time soon. This question is better asked when the Concord Agreement changes again.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Ferrari wont leave though, at least not any time soon. This question is better asked when the Concord Agreement changes again.

That's when we're talking about, isn't it?

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

That's when we're talking about, isn't it?

Not from what this is stemming off of, this is stemming off of the impending rules outline that is for 2021. Technical rules aren't the concorde agreement which works out CVC distribution, the FIA typically does do stuff with regulations in said agreement. The issue Ferrari is currently addressing is the same as others working on engines they really don't agree with while working on engines from the previous spec.

My comment prior still stands, until it's a conversation about money and CVC distribution, I don't believe they'll actually leave.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Not from what this is stemming off of, this is stemming off of the impending rules outline that is for 2021. Technical rules aren't the concorde agreement which works out CVC distribution

It also lays out governance, particularly the now-defunct SWG, that's why the engine rules are able to change in 2020. The end of Concorde 2013 is a whole part of that. If it ran to 2023 then we wouldn't be talking about the possibility of wholesale change (as some of the teams are) until then. As it is the changes that Brawn has suggested aren't as wide-reaching as they could be.

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

It also lays out governance, particularly the now-defunct SWG, that's why the engine rules are able to change in 2020. The end of Concorde 2013 is a whole part of that. If it ran to 2023 then we wouldn't be talking about the possibility of wholesale change (as some of the teams are) until then. As it is the changes that Brawn has suggested aren't as wide-reaching as they could be.

That's still not the same thing. In your view that means that the 2014, 2017 and 2015 token system, were all agreed upon in the year to year tech regs, like the ones we're currently seeing up for talks for next year. They're not. Giving teams more power to have better leverage of prize distribution in the CVC is what the 2013 agreement amounted to. This is not a concorde argument and if it is, then I haven't seen it referred to that until now. I've only seen it being talked about as further technical regulations that were already planned for in this time frame.

Now the concorde could come up again or not, they're seems to be a desire for it to come up soon to help etch a deal that doesn't see small teams be as limited as they are. Technical regs are between the FIA and Teams, the FOM really has no say in that. Concorde they do, they could influence the Concorde to help leverage lots of things though and have an indirect influence.