{"id":4028,"date":"2017-08-06T11:00:05","date_gmt":"2017-08-06T11:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/f1vault.co.uk\/?p=4028"},"modified":"2017-08-06T11:00:05","modified_gmt":"2017-08-06T11:00:05","slug":"reporters-06082017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/reporters-06082017\/","title":{"rendered":"REPORTERS – 06\/08\/2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

Eddie Jordan has made a name for himself as a man who breaks stories. But, a claim that Mercedes is to walk away as a works team is \u2018Fake News\u2019 which prompted Jordan to say he didn\u2019t say they would quit entirely <\/em><\/p>\n

Mercedes quitting is fake news<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has called on Channel 4\u2019s Eddie Jordan to stop repeating \u201cfake news\u201d about the future of the team in Formula One.<\/p>\n

The former team owner has consistently repeated doubts about the German manufacturer\u2019s commitment as a works team. He suggests that major sponsors could leave the team soon.<\/p>\n

In Azerbaijan, Jordan claimed that the team could be sold to a group of Chinese investors. \u00a0Wolff is upset because Jordan’s comments have planted doubts in the minds of employees of both the race team and the Mercedes engine facility in Brixworth.<\/p>\n

Wolff told Autosport \u201cI stop laughing when it’s about making jokes on the back of 1500 employees that care about their future. And I said it in an interview with him, that this is a too serious a topic for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are not leaving F1, none of our sponsors\u00a0is\u00a0leaving F1, we are pretty happy where we are.\u201d Jordan remains adamant that Mercedes will withdraw if they are not getting enough from their investment.<\/p>\n

He said \u201cI’ve never said they will pull out. I\u2019ve said Mercedes\u00a0are\u00a0in the business for marketing and technical reasons, they are not in the business of love.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd they will go when it suits them. I don’t think I said what the right time is.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The halo has divided the paddock and fans, but now the FIA has used its veto to enforce the cockpit protection device it has prompted backlash from drivers but FIA President Jean Todt defended the move <\/em><\/p>\n

FIA defends decision to impose Halo<\/strong><\/p>\n

The FIA has defended its decision to impose the halo cockpit protection device from 2018. Since the sport\u2019s governing body made the announcement last week opposition from fans, teams and most drivers\u00a0has\u00a0grown.<\/p>\n

The decision was announced following a \u00a0strategy group meeting last Wednesday where it is understood only one team supported its use. Some drivers have been opposed to its introduction from its inception.<\/p>\n

The FIA says the halo increased survival rates by 17%, with the Aeroscreen not being as rigorously tested. Former three times world champion and Mercedes non-executive director Niki Lauda, told The Guardian \u201cWe are trying hard with faster cars and getting closer to the spectators to attract new fans to the sport. \u201cBut this now is destroyed by an over-reaction.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is 100% a better solution than the halo. The halo destroys the DNA of an F1 car. The FIA has made F1 as safe as it gets.\u201d The FIA responded to that, saying in a statement \u201cOver the past decade motor sport has witnessed serious incidents that affected drivers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe severity of the incidents made it clear to the FIA that developing a solution to mitigate against frontal impact in the area of the cockpit is a research priority.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the last decade, there has been a number of incidents across motorsport where serious injuries and deaths have occurred because of impacts to the head.<\/p>\n

Last year The Grand Prix Drivers\u2019 Association asked the FIA president, Jean Todt, for some form of protection to be \u201cimplemented as swiftly as possible\u2019\u2019. The FIA continued testing a variety of devices and has now explained its adoption of the halo.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

China is rapidly becoming a key market as the wealth of people in the country continues to grow could Formula One fans who have the passion for the sport lead to two races in the country? <\/em><\/p>\n

Target China for growth<\/strong><\/p>\n

Formula One is to team up in a strategic partnership with the marketing agency Lagardere Sports to build partnerships and raise the profile of the sport in China, a region that Liberty Media sees a huge area for growth.<\/p>\n

Liberty is targeting China and the United States as key areas where the sport can expand. There have been rumours that both countries could hold two Grand Prix\u2019s each season.<\/p>\n

In a joint statement\u00a0Formula\u00a0One and Lagardere said it \u00a0would “identify and secure strategic partners for Formula One in areas including event promotion, media rights, digital and brand partnerships, merchandising, talent development and racing team development.”<\/p>\n

Formula One\u2019s managing director of commercial operations Sean Bratches, says that fans in the region have already shown they are some of the most passionate in the world.<\/p>\n

He added, \u201cWe are keen to build on this, developing our brand through unique live entertainment experiences designed to get fans closer to the action.\u201d<\/p>\n

CEO of\u00a0Largardere\u00a0Andrew\u00a0Gorgiou\u00a0said that the middle class in China could grow to half a billion in the next five years. Lagardere could help Formula One tap that potential by developing premium local content.<\/p>\n

Gorgiou\u00a0said \u201cthat growth is huge, 400 million people over 12 or 13 years with disposable income to spend on entertainment and lifestyle. That\u2019s a proxy for the size of the market<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Is Formula One a sport, entertainment, development test ground or all three? The sports hitting a point where it needs to decide what it is are the words of Red Bull boss Christian Horner.\u00a0 As the sport looks at the future regulations how important is the debate about what is Formula One?<\/em><\/p>\n

F1 at a crossroads and decisions need making<\/strong><\/p>\n

Red Bull boss Christian Horner says that Formula One is at a crossroad and needs to make decisions now to be relevant in the next decade. The sport is currently debating what kind of engine regulations should be introduced from 2021.<\/p>\n

The teams, Liberty Media and FIA have agreed broadly that the sport must remain the pinnacle of motorsport, but also find a solution that allows for cheaper, louder and sufficiently powerful engines.<\/p>\n

Two meetings have already taken place about the future regulations, with teams doing further analysis will over the summer before being reviewed at the next meeting of F1’s Strategy Group in September.<\/p>\n

Horner who represents the biggest non-works team, says the sport needs to find the correct balance between road-relevant technology and entertainment. Horner told ESPN, \u201cI think what’s really interesting is that Formula One is effectively at a crossroads with the new\u00a0regulations,\u00a0because those regulations theoretically come in 2021.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere will be probably\u00a0and\u00a0eight to ten-year life on those engines, so what we are looking at is actually is Formula One’s relevance pretty much up to 2030,\u201d He says Formula One needs answers today about what it is.<\/p>\n

He added \u201cI hope that with the opportunity there is with the regulation change that is being discussed at the moment that the fundamental aspects of cost, performance and attractiveness to the fans, therefore the noise, the acoustics of these engines, are a key factor in the set of regulations they come up with.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

London held the first F1 Live last month and with Silverstone activating a break clause in its contract. How difficult would it be to move the race to the streets or a park in the British capital according to McLaren\u2019s Zak Brown?<\/em><\/p>\n

London race a \u201ctall order\u201d \u2013 Brown<\/strong><\/p>\n

McLaren CEO Zac Brown believes that moving the British Grand Prix or holding one in London would be a \u201ctall order\u201d and believes that Silverstone is the only realistic venue to host the race.<\/p>\n

The long term future of the race has been put in doubt after the circuits owner triggered a break clause meaning the race\u2019s future after 2019 is uncertain. There has long been talk of the race being held on the streets of London, but the only credible options appear to be the Docklands or the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.<\/p>\n

Brown believes a street race would be unlikely it would mean shutting down London down for a week. He told Motorsport.com \u201cPeople are talking about a London GP, which I think in this particular instance is a tall order \u2013 and Silverstone will remain the home of F1 racing in England.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked why he felt a London race would be too hard to put on, he said: “I think the infrastructure that would be required to put on a London GP would be unlike any other street race, unless you did it maybe around the Olympic Stadium or Olympic Park.\u201d<\/p>\n

The McLaren boss recently suggested that a way Silverstone could be saved is Liberty buying the circuit and turning it into a hub for Formula One. He also says he believes Liberty and the BRDC will reach a deal over the future of the race.<\/p>\n

Brown says while he believes a race is unlikely a repeat of F1 Live could be copied around the world. Saying \u201cI think it is an example of where Liberty have talked about 20 Super Bowls. What the NFL does, they come into the town of the week of the event and they take over the city with fan engagement to a whole new level.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg collision during the latter part of last weekends Hungarian Grand Prix sparked a debate between the two. Hulkenberg and Magnussen continued with Hulkenberg labelling \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Magnussen a \u201cwannabe Verstappen\u201d \u2013 Hulkenberg \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nico Hulkenberg\u2019s spat with Haas\u2019s Kevin Magnussen continues to\u00a0rumble\u00a0on this week with him labelling the Dane as \u201cwannabe Verstappen.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pair clashed in the closing stages of the Hungarian Grand Prix, as Hulkenberg attempted a move around the outside of Turn Two with Magnussen forcing the Renault driver off the road at the exit of the corner and, despite holding onto the position, was later issued a five-second penalty for the incident.<\/p>\n

Hulkenberg confronting Magnussen in the TV pen. Leading to this exchange;<\/p>\n

Hulkenberg \u201cOnce again, the most unsporting driver on the grid.\u201d
\nMagnussen \u201csuck my balls, mate\u201d
\nHulkenberg “You did a really good job.”<\/p>\n

Writing for Sport1 Hulkenberg wrote \u201cI wish there were as many people talking about the race. At the moment we have different challenges in Formula One than the balls of a wannabe Verstappen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m not the kind of guy to curry favour with the public after the race, and I don’t need to insult someone. If I have a problem with somebody, I go ahead and say what’s on my mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hulkenberg says \u00a0he was able to take Magnussen’s retort in good humour.<\/p>\n

Saying \u201cWith Kevin it’s like having a little brother. You know he is not able to defend himself in any other way. Therefore, it’s easy to take his remarks with a smile on your face.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

That\u2019s all from this edition of Reporters.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Eddie Jordan has made a name for himself as a man who breaks stories. But, a claim that Mercedes is to walk away as a works team is \u2018Fake News\u2019 which prompted Jordan to say he didn\u2019t say they would quit entirely Mercedes quitting is fake news Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has called on Channel<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,18],"tags":[43,664,754,1660],"class_list":["post-4028","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-features","category-this-week","tag-43","tag-f1","tag-formula-one","tag-reporters"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4028","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4028"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4028\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4028"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4028"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4028"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}