{"id":3111,"date":"2017-01-01T12:00:16","date_gmt":"2017-01-01T12:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/f1vault.co.uk\/?p=3111"},"modified":"2017-01-01T12:00:16","modified_gmt":"2017-01-01T12:00:16","slug":"reporters-01012017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.f1vault.co.uk\/index\/reporters-01012017\/","title":{"rendered":"REPORTERS \u2013 01\/01\/2017 \u2013 Year in Review \u2013 Part Two"},"content":{"rendered":"

June \u2013 Following the Brexit vote in June what could the United Kingdom\u2019s decision to leave the European Union have on Formula One?<\/em><\/p>\n

Bracing for impact of Brexit <\/strong><\/p>\n

Formula One could feel the decision by British voters to leave the European Union as soon as next week\u2019s Austrian Grand Prix after falls on the global stock market.<\/p>\n

The cost of the pound has hit a thirty year low after almost 52% of the public voted yesterday to leave the EU which has prompted falls across all the global stock markets. This means that costs for teams could rise as the cost of hotels, food and basic supply\u2019s has risen.<\/p>\n

Brexit will not happen overnight, but it remains to be seen regarding the nature of individual deals struck with European governments over the movement of goods and people.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s believed that the UK will retain visa-free short term travel but for teams employing people it could lead to a substantial amount of paperwork and added costs for work visas if UK Nationals wanted to work in the EU. However some teams like Mercedes, Renault and Red Bull could relocate to the Europe which could further impact the economy.<\/p>\n

Formula One and Motorsport in the UK is a huge industry worth \u00a39 Billion to the economy and employs over 40,000 people with many more industries like aerospace and automotive through to military and manufacturing linked to the sport.<\/p>\n

No one during the referendum would comment on the potential impact of Brexit on their team or the sport as a whole. This could impact on the on the re-negations of the Concorde Agreement in 2020.<\/p>\n

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August \u2013 When he was announced as a Toro Rosso driver aged sixteen many in the sport were asking why a driver could get a drive with only a season of car racing. But why has Mika Hakkinen admitted he was wrong?<\/em><\/p>\n

I was wrong on Verstappen \u2013 Hakkinen <\/strong><\/p>\n

Two times world champion Mika Hakkinen says he was wrong to criticise the age which Red Bull driver Max Verstappen came into Formula One.<\/p>\n

The former McLaren driver said Verstappen was not suitably prepared for his 2015 debut season with\u00a0 Toro Rosso, and said at the time: \u201cI would never let a driver as young as that race in F1.\u201d But speaking at Assen home to the Dutch TT Hakkinen admitted he was wrong.<\/p>\n

He said \u201cI criticised him personally when he was entering Formula 1, thinking he was too young. \u201cBut I was really happy I was wrong, and it has strengthened my understanding that young girls and young boys they are much more ready in this world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMax, obviously, it\u2019s great what he has been doing and when I was a young kid \u2013 16, 17 \u2013 when [I was] go-karting, it was amazing. It was incredibly competitive: the materials, discipline, physical efforts \u2013 what I needed to perform was at a very high level.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hakkinen says people are developing faster and not just in motorsport but in sport and business because of the tolls available or them to study and understand what is happening in this world.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can go for it and study as much as you want on the internet if you find the right information. So the life is much more in the fast lane these days. That explains why these young drivers are entering in such high positions.\u201d<\/p>\n

He finished by saying \u201cnevertheless you need great talent and commitment, great discipline to be successful and Max obviously has done a great job.\u201d<\/p>\n

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December \u2013 With drivers making their debut as young as seventeen how concerned is Jacques Villeneuve about the push to younger drivers?<\/em><\/p>\n

Pushing at younger age worries Villeneuve <\/strong><\/p>\n

Former world champion Jacques Villeneuve says the trend of pushing teenagers into Formula One is giving the \u201cwrong image\u201d of the sport. In 2015, Max Verstappen made his debut aged seventeen and next year Lance Stroll will make his debut for Williams aged eighteen.<\/p>\n

The former world champion believe that teenagers coming into the sport suggests it look too easy now to make their debut in the sport. Villeneuve told Motorsport.com \u201cBasically their luggage is not full yet. Normally you would get to F1 with luggage that was half full, and you just have to do the other half.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow they come in and the luggage still has the new tag from the shop, and it hasn’t been opened yet! That’s wrong. It doesn’t matter how talented you are, this is F1, it’s the pinnacle.\u201d\u00a0 Villeneuve added that there\u2019s something missing.<\/p>\n

Speaking about Stroll, he says the Canadian could rise to the challenge. Strol will make his debut for the same team as Villeneuve. \u201cHe’s super quick, but we don’t know what he’s made of mentally or psychologically, because F1 is a different beast.\u201d<\/p>\n

Villeneuve says the biggest unknown for Stroll, is how he will manage not being in the best car and team where everything is not set up for him to win. Meaning its unknown how he is going to react to that.<\/p>\n

However, Villeneuve understands why Stroll has the made the jump so early in his career: \u201cIt doesn’t matter, he has the money to come in, so why wait? It’s just the way it is. Why bother wasting a season in GP2 where you risk not winning, or [your image] getting hurt.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

November \u2013 He was key in Mercedes rebirth as a power house in F1 so after what his predecessors described as \u2018the foundations\u2019 to their current success. So why couldn\u2019t he trust Niki Lauda and Toto Wolff?<\/em><\/p>\n

Why I left Mercedes \u2013 Brawn<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ross Brawn says in his new book Total Competition that he left Mercedes at the end of 2013 because he could not trust Niki Lauda and Toto Wolff, who were added to the management team by Mercedes.<\/p>\n

In his new book Total Competition written with Adam Parr, Brawn says \u201cWhat happened at Mercedes is that people were imposed on me who I couldn\u2019t trust. I never really knew what they were trying to do. I mean Niki would tell me one thing, then I would hear he was saying something else.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brawn added that Wolff was making critical comments about him in a conversation recorded by former F1 team boss Colin Kolles. \u201cSo I was beginning to deal with people who I didn\u2019t feel I could ultimately trust; people within the team, who had let me down already in terms of their approach.\u201d<\/p>\n

He says when he learned that Paddy Lowe was joining the team and challenged Wolff and Lauda they blamed each other. Brawn says he couldn\u2019t trust them and he said he had not previously been in an \u201cus or them\u201d situation at a senior level in a team: \u201cI have never faced that and maybe I just didn\u2019t feel passionately enough about the whole project to want to go through that grief.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wolff and Lauda became shareholders, which Brawn say he never understood. \u201cTheir view was that they wanted management who were committed and I think they also took a view that by being shareholders they would gain greater respect from the team.\u201d<\/p>\n

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November \u2013 McLaren ousted Ron Dennis after Brazil but what does his successor Zak Brown see has their priorities as they look to rebuild? <\/em><\/p>\n

Brown confirmed as McLarens director<\/strong><\/p>\n

McLaren has confirmed that Zak Brown will become the groups new executive director as they begin restructuring after the departure of Ron Dennis last week.<\/p>\n

Brown will work with Jonathan Neale the teams chief operating officer and work with the executive committee to appoint a successor to Ron Dennis. He will start his role next month and will have \u00a0“a significant part of a restructuring programme that will align the Group’s commercial and strategic operations relating to achieving success in Formula One.”<\/p>\n

Brown has experience from the commercial side being the founder of JMI marketing group which has had close involvement with sponsorship deals in the sport. He had been linked with Liberty Media the sports new commercial rights holder, but last week it emerged he was leaning to the McLaren role.<\/p>\n

Brown said \u201cI’m immensely proud to be joining McLaren Technology Group, I have the utmost respect and admiration for what the business has achieved to date.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving worked closely with McLaren for many years, I’ve been struck by the talent and ambition of the entire workforce, and I very much look forward to complementing the business’s many existing strengths, and building on them.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that he has worked closely with the team before on sponsorship deals which has allowed him to develop excellent relationships across the company.<\/p>\n

One Brown\u2019s priority will be looking for a new title sponsor as the team has been without one for three years.<\/p>\n

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November \u2013 This year F1 got new owners. But what is Liberty Media\u2019s plan for the future of the sport?<\/em><\/p>\n

Liberty\u2019s vision for F1<\/strong><\/p>\n

Liberty Media has outlined their vision for Formula One following there takeover of the sport.<\/p>\n

The group has outline the main areas of focus will be in the next few years. \u201cBig Opportunity at Formula One\u201d was the title of the document. Liberty highlights the “opportunity to develop the sport for benefit of all stakeholders (fans, teams, partners, shareholders)”, before narrowing it down to five select opportunities<\/p>\n

There key points are<\/p>\n