Club Arnage

We have just launched the 2004 Dreamracers Fantasy Formula One league.

Go and take part..... CLICK HERE! (http://www.dreamracers.net/f1)

Anyone up for a private league for CA forum?

But its formula 1.

I know, but there is BTCC and WRC too....

Le Mans was far too tricky a league to get going...

Just out of curiosity, what's wrong with F1?

RANT  - ON

Formula 1 in the past 5 years and going back a little further has strived to fulfill the needs of the advertising media and corporate sponsors at all cost. They have failed to recognise the needs of the "supporter" with rule changes helping to BAN over taking or adventourous over takes . The drivers who have flare are penalised for their entertaining efforts , and for the good and glory of Ferrari , the largest and most popular team in the championship , they have helped to secure victories from short sighted officials.

Basically , Its getting boring. No overtakes, incidents, not real racing, Just a very fast procession of multi million pound cars, with fantastic screaming engines.

RANT  - ENDED

I wouldnt disagree with a single word, but its the most popular league we do!

Rebuttal

I've only been watching F1 closely since '98.  I do have to agree that the racing is quite boring at times and yes the officials seem to go out of their way to see Ferrari win.  However, there is 2 sides to F1: 1. What you build to race and 2. Who you hire to race what you've built.  

The racing aspect does need serious attention.  And unfortunately privateers can't compete with their big budget works rivals.  But I find it interesting to watch which big team is able to get the advantage.  It's kinda exciting to see who made the biggest improvements over the winter.

Just my 2 cents.

Yep , fair play, I too will be interested for a the first few races to see how the new Williams goes.

right then I've joined the F1 league.  Now if you could sort me out with whatever prizes your giving away, I'd be much appreciative.

Just for the record, the prizes are:
# A brand new 'bare-bones' ALUMINIUM CUBE PC!
# 3 x Silver Sony Playstation 2 Consoles
# 20 x Official F1 2003 Games
# Duke Video vouchers
# Formula Framed goodies
# MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON!

Lemansdriver,
If you've only been following F1 for six years, you probably wouldn't understand whats wrong with it.  My advice, go buy or rent some F1 season review videos from the mid-eighties, things will become alot clearer.
Fax

And there were some very boring racing then too!

But also the manic turbos and a williams that could almost drive its self, oh yes Group C at LM and Group B in rallying........................So well.... its all changed, but for the better? I dont know, but the past always looks better rose tinted and edited on on video

Easy does it there, Bobblehat. I hope you know who you are taking on here. Fax knows EVERYTHING about F1. I know that's a big statement, but he's not called Fax'n'Figures for nothing.
be prepared to back up your staements with minutea and never, ever slag-off James Hunt or Ronnie Peterson without an absolutely iron-clad case! Just giving you a 'heads-up', you understand.

Ta matt for the "heads up" ( feal a bit silly now - only because of the comment about red your pick up on the other thread ???) But ask any commentator ie Murry Walker and ask him if it was better in them "olden days" and I seem to rember that he said that the were pleanty of boring races then too. That all I am saying, Hey! James Hunt was my first racing hero......

Certainly there were some clunkers of races back then as well.  But I'll take guys like Nelson Piquet, Keke Rosberg, Alain Prost, Senna and Nigel Mansell driving a Lotus, Williams, McLaren or Brabham with 1400 BHP worth of BMW, TAG/Porsche, Renault or Honda turbo power strapped to their butts, no launch control, no traction control, fully manuel gearboxes (a real gear lever, remember those?) any day.
John

Totaly agree with that, Jon!!

But when those guys were around there were drivers strikes, tracks breaking up, cancelled races, races won in court rooms, or am I getting my eras mixed up ;). Mind you I would love to know what Keke, one of the most balls out drivers ever, (love the idea of him stubbing out his ciggy at the back of the pits at silverstone and climbing it to the cockpit and turning up the boost, wounder if the dial went to 11 on that day!) thinks of the williams his lad had a go in. I guess he would get in it himself if he could!

I suspect that Keke could still drive the wheels off of anything he climbed into.  When he set that pole lap at Silverstone in 1985 that you're refering to, it was beginning to drizzle and he had a deflating rear tire to cope with, as well as a Honda turbo with a light-switch power delivery.  The sound of things brass clanging together usually heralds his arrival.  It didn't sound like Super Rat was terribly impressed when he drove the F1 Jag a few years ago and I think Keke would probably have similar impressions.
I agree on the politics of the period, at the height of the FOCA vs FIA wars, things got pretty weird off track.
Fax

Im not surprised he didnt like that jag I dont think any one did, not even those that built it!

The one other guy from that era who was electrifying to watch, especially in qualifying was Rene Arnoux.  If it was the dying minutes of a session and you saw a Ferrari or a Renault with a white helmeted driver rolling down the pit lane, you knew you were about to see something special.
John