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It’s Sunday and Em’s spent the weekend playing volleyball in the sun. I’ve been inside working on code. I’ve paused to watch the Grand Prix, hoping it’ll be a good one, but after 52 laps (with 21 to go) I have to say this is dull. It’s like watching an episode of The Simpsons or Friends, because every shot I’m thinking “hey, haven’t I seen this one before?”.

The problem is this: the current rules and regulations have resulted in a race where overtaking is rare, so it all happens in the pit. This means that to understand how the race is panning out, the viewer must be fully aware of the varying relative speeds. There’s nothing exciting to watch, so the excitement has to be psychological.

Adverts however, serve to dismember any continuity, breaking up this strategic game into a stunted mess.

The current F1 format which relies on awareness of relative track positions is fundamentally unsuitable for interrupted coverage.

A Tale of Two F1 Races

The 2005 F1 GP was a complete shambles and the resulting derision of F1 did no favours to the sport. This year, the race has more than six divers, but there’s little more action then last year.

This entry is testament to just how dull the race is. After all, if it was anything more than dull I’d be watching it like a hawk. Something needs to change if F1 is going to hold onto public interest.

A Commentators Nightmare

James Allan, half of the ITV-F1 commentary team summed the race up as follows:

What happened last year is in the past, and this has been a wonderful homecoming for F1.

James most famous predecessor, Murray Walker, is famous for saying the wrong thing, but Mr. Allan is bordering on insanity - either that or he feels it’s necessary to spout garbage rather than allow a moment’s silence.

Todays race was pitiful; with no overtaking on track, there was a lot of piffle-spouting required to full the dull gaps; somehow, to his credit, Martin Brundle stays honest and objective; thank heaven for small mercies.

Oh, Schumacher’s just won, that’s nice for him, but really, who cares?

Hopefully the FIA F1 Survey will get enough suggestions to make the sport fun again.