Ouch. Really? I wasn’t going to mention this but seriously? That’s plain rude.

I finished third in the first heat on Saturday. Ben Anderson finished 2nd and Sam Oliveira a convincingly distant winner. After the race, we were taken on a parade lap and interviewed for the commentary. Here is what I said (transcripted from a video).

I stand by what I said. This wasn’t a personal attack, Ben. In fact, I went out of my way to preface my words with a compliment. It’s just racing. I do not think that your car complies with the regulations and I am fully within my rights to say so. It should also be noted that I said this looking at you; to your face. You had an opportunity to respond.

But I do wholeheartedly think that you, Ben Anderson, have acted unprofessionally. You have abused your position as a Editorial Assistant of Autosport to make a potentially damaging, personal attack on a fellow competitor. You were deliberately vague in your omission of the story. You have resigned your journalistic integrity.

Why does this even matter? It matters because when a journalist chooses to compete, there exists a conflict of interest between your professional role as a journalist and your natural desire to win as a competitor. It is an important distinction. For the moment that a competitor, official, or scrutineer acts differently to you than they would to another, your position becomes untenable.

Furthermore, I would argue that the reason no competitor has protested the car (despite almost unanimous competitor agreement) is that people are afraid. Afraid of your position at Autosport and what it would mean for the club, championship or them personally. Indeed, I would argue that you have since given undeniable credence to this argument.

So I’m calling you out, Ben. I’m calling you out for not acting in a manner consistent with the worlds leading motorsport magazine. I’m calling you out for not acting in a manner expected of a former winner of the MSA Young Motor Sport Journalist of the Year Award. I’m calling you out for being unprofessional.

Technical details

In the interests of full disclosure, I will also explain my position.

I do not consider it to be legal to run the smaller front tyres on the rear of the car. Formula Vee has a fixed ratio gearbox and by running the front tyres on the rear it is changing the effective final drive ratio of the differential. Especially when it is necessary to modify a standard GAC chassis to do so. What’s more, I do not buy the argument that it is legal by virtue of the fact that the regulations only specify “Dunlop Formula Vee tyres.” The meaning is obvious – Dunlop do not make two different sets of tyres – they make a front and a rear tyre (see this invoice for the purchase of new tyres). What is the precedence for this? How about 43 years of racing with the larger tyres on the rear, smaller tyres on the front.

I do accept, however, that the technical regulations are not as clear as they should be. But they include a provision for this too:

Technical Regulation 5.1 is included precisely to safeguard against competitors taking advantage of this type of ambiguity. It is not clear – so work on the principle that you cannot.

Autosport did not mention a crucial story of the weekend. Despite entering under championship regulations, the rules were changed on Sunday morning such that the meeting was now to be run solely under MSA Safety Regulations. In effect, denying a competitor the opportunity to formally protest the technical legality of a car.

It is also worth noting that the Winter Series regulations (which starts on November 14th) include a clarification to outlaw this infringement.

Let’s hope that my prophecy is wrong. Maybe Simon Gillett and his team will emerge as the saviours of the British Grand Prix. Maybe, but I don’t think so and this is why.

1. TunnelGate

Have you ever looked back with the benefit of hindsight and thought to yourself that something that happened along the way should have warned you of the outcome? Well, I have and I think this is good example of another.

Construction work on the tunnel between McLean’s and Coppice began on the weekend of February 7th and 8th. The rationale was simple: to stop construction traffic crossing the circuit and to keep the circuit operational whilst the extensive and elaborate circuit modifications were completed.

Copyright © Malcom Edeson.

Copyright © al_green.

The only problem was, nobody thought it through. Every single kid in the world knows how much easier it is to take something apart than it is to put it back together again.  And that was the problem. When they had finished constructing the tunnel, they neglected to reinstate the run-off, instead placing the barriers (also now part of the structural integrity of the tunnel) quite literally feet from the track.

Copyright © al_green.

It was the following weekend that I first had an opportunity to drive the new section of track. It took just one pass for me and my colleagues to know it wasn’t safe. Ultimately, I guess that what’s most disturbing about this whole episode. It is the fact that nobody involved in the construction, the circuit management, architects and builders thought so too.

Unsurprisingly, the Motor Sports Association (MSA) refused to grant Donington Park a license for 2009 on safety grounds until modifications were made to rectify the problem. This caused the first major casualty of the works and the British Formula Three and British GT meeting was postened until July.

None the less, by the time the British Tourng Car Championship round in May came around, the track was ammended and the MSA granted Donington Park the necessary permit for racing.

2. TunnelGate Returns

The most recent episode in the TunnelGate fiasco occurred last weekend when I was at the circuit for the BRSCC Midland South Formula Ford 1600 championship. It was raining, heavily, but not severely. I have raced in worse and what’s more, I have also worked at Donington Park in conditions just as bad.

The problems started around midday when track activities were postponed whilst the MSA Clerks assessed the flooding of the circuit between McLean’s and Coppice (the location of the new tunnel). The area of new track had become a large, two inch deep puddle. The organising club and the MSA officials did everything they could to get track activities resumed but after bringing in a pump to remove the standing water, the (reinstated) run-off subsided and the Clerks finally relented and cancelled the meeting.

The official line printed in Autosport magazine was that the build up of water was caused by a drainage pipe that had been crushed during the earlier construction works. Plausible, but I don’t think that’s the whole truth. Sources at the meeting hinted that the new surface was absolutely flat with no crown (and therefore provided no natural drainage) and that the tarmac used was of an unusually poor quality.

3. The Recession and an Ambiguous Business Model

Pitpass has published a series of great articles on the business of chief executive Simon Gillett and his company, Donington Ventures Leisure Ltd. (DVL). Upon it’s announcement, the £100 million redevelopment was to be funded by an anonymous, private investor. It later emerged that a proposed deal with sports marketing giant IMG and investment bank Goldman Sachs was withdrawn when the bank was unable to justify the £100 million investment in the current economic climate – despite Gilletts optmisitic projections of a £175 million return over 10 years.

Since that time Gillett claims he has another individual debenture scheme with predictions worth £140 million. The bottom line is that if Gillett and DVL can’t raise the necessary funds within the next month, construction work will cease and ultimately, the British Grand Prix will be lost.

4. Welsh Local Motorsport Centre of Excellence

Simon Gillett’s previous venture was an attempt to establish a Local Motorsport Centre of Excellence in South Wales on disused mining land around Garn-yr-Erw. The “world class” facility would have created around 200 local jobs and included a 60-room hotel, conference centre and off-road facilities.

However, after his Innovate Motorsport (note that this company is now in liquidation) failed to secure the necessary planning permission (sound familiar?), Gillett vowed to move the programme to a site in the Midlands (Donington Park) with £30 million of investment. A year later and six months after Gillett sold his share in the company Innovate Motorsport went bust owing £200,000 to its creditors.

My own sources close to event security firm Mckenzie Arnold, who recently pulled their staff from operating at the facility, confirm allegations of unpaid bills related back as far as 2008. Taken in the context of fresh BBC allegations that contract catering firm Eclipse Catering are currently owed £46,000 by DVL (having been involved with Donington Park for almost eight years) and rent arrears with the landowners,  it does little to calm fears that Donington Ventures Leisure wont share the same fate as its predecessor.

5. Local Infrastructure

In 2002, a £56 million pound investment was made to improve the main arterial route to Silverstone – the A43. With four lanes of dual carriage-way traffic leading to its gate, Silverstone is better equipped than any other circuit in the country to deal with the influx of traffic that a Grand Prix creates.

Donington Park on the other hand, is not. Whilst DVL will tell you Donington Park lies central between the M1, A42, A50 and not far from the M42, the fact remains that it requires miles of single carriage way road to reach the circuits gate.

Should Gillett and his team defy the odds and the 2010 British Grand Prix actually goes ahead,  it could well be 2011 before anybody actually gets out.

6. Timescales

Even if the required investment is made in time for construction to begin, my final reservations lie in whether or not there is in fact enough time for construction to be completed before the Grand Prix in twelve months time. Bernie Ecclestone recently imposed a September deadline for the inspection of progress and as somebody who visits Donington Park regularly, with the exception of the new Tunnel and the removal of the iconic Dunlop bridge, nothing much has changed. And given the FIA deadline for track inspection of April 1st, necessary to grant Donington Park the type of license required to host a Grand Prix, the chances of completing the elaborate redevelopments seems increasingly slim.

Time until FIA Donington Park Deadline:
[fergcorp_cdt_single date="1st April 2010"]

The Bottom Line

Honestly, I hope I am wrong. If Gillett and his team deliver on their promises then the British Grand Prix will continue to prosper for years to come. However, the alternative is bleak and I fear that in out manoeuvring Silverstone and the BRDC, Mr Ecclestone may well inadvertantly deprive Britain of our blue ribband event and ultimately damage the motorsport industry.

Motor sport contributes an estimated £5 billion annually to the UK economy and much of that depends on the Formula One teams and ancillary suppliers which are based here. Without a Grand Prix and despite the potential of two different British World Champions in succession, it seems unlikely that Britain can sustain its position as the centre of motor sports technology, innovation and culture.

The now, Dunlop Motorsport News Race Academy (sort-of, because Dunlop doesn’t call it that), judges are: James Bailey (Dunlop PR chief), former academy winner Simon Shaw, BTCC racer Paul O’Neil (and half-brother to Sporty Spice) and Motorsport News journalist Matt James.

Dunlop Race Academy – How it works

Last week, Dunlop made registrations available on its website, as well as publishing further details of the academy will work. The key points can be summarised as follows:

• Registration is available up until the end of March. Applicants must submit a “video audition” to the Dunlop website informing them of their “racing form”.
• Dunlop will shortlist 36 drivers (six drivers from six regions of the country) on or around 10th April 2009.
• The Dunlop Race Academy judges will monitor the performance of the 36 short-listed drivers between 1st April and 25th May.
• On 26th May, each Dunlop Race Academy judge will vote for the best driver in each region whilst at the same time, the public can also vote for their favourite driver on the Dunlop Drivers Know website.
• Both judges and public votes will count, the judges contributing 75% of the vote (that was probably intended for three judges and not four) and the public 25%. The public is therefore effectively worth 1.3 judges.
• The top six drivers from each region will be assessed on circuit by the Race Academy judges and shortly after, the three finalists will be announced.
• Each finalist will receive a drive in one of the final three rounds of the 2009 Dunlop Sport Maxx Cup and both their on-track and off-track performance assessed by the Dunlop Race Academy judges.
• And finally – the top performing driver will receive a fully funded drive in 2010.

Dunlop appears to have the most transparent and accessible racing driver scholarship in British motor sport. That is a pretty bold statement considering it is in the context of an MSA initiative (MSA British Race Elite) and two from the BRDC.

During the 1st April to 25th May period I will potentially be racing four weekends (three National rounds and one Midland South). I plan to submit my application in due course and I will be hoping that a positive start to the year in National Formula Ford will compliment my past achievements.

What is the Racing Steps Foundation?

The Racing Steps Foundation is  a motor sport initiative, founded by successful business man Graham Sharp, to “help talented young British racing drivers realise their dreams…it is for young hopefuls with the ambition, skills and determination to succeed but without the funds to make their way up the ladder”. In practice, the Racing Steps Foundation, under the patronage of Graham Sharp, provides the necessary funding to any driver involved in the programme.

When it launched, the programme initially funded four drivers: karters Jacob Stilp (12) and Jake Dennis (13), karting graduate James Calado (19) and former McLaren Autosport BRDC Award winner, Oliver Turvey.

Oliver Turvey

Oliver Turvey is the most high profile driver currently involved with the programme and has been involved since its inception.

Turvey began his car racing career in 2003 when he contested the Formula Renault UK Winter Series with Mark Burdett Motorsport, finishing 18th.  Following this, he spent three years racing in Formula BMW UK and this saw him finish 7th in 2004, 8th in 2005 and 2nd in 2006. During 2006, he finished 6th in the Formula BMW World Final and also contested two races in the British Formula Three National Class.

After receiving the 2006 McLaren Autosport BRDC Award, Turvey dovetailed a season in Italian Formula Renault and Formula Renault Eurocup during 2007, finishing 9th and 8th respectively.

The Racing Steps Foundation immediately placed Turvey in British Formula Three with Carlin Motorsport. After leading the championship going into the last round, Turvey was to finish 2nd overall following a disappointing weekend at Donington Park and lost the championship to Carlin team mate Jamie Alguersuari. In November 2008, he also finished 8th in the Formula Three Macau Grand Prix.

James Calado

Also involved with the programme since its inception, James Calado made his car racing debut with the Racing Steps Foundation in 2007 after an extensive European karting career.

The Racing Steps Foundation placed Calado immediately in Formula Renault UK with championship winning team Fortec Motorsport. He finished 7th overall in the championship, having taken one win (Snetterton). During the season, he also contested three races in the Formula Renault NEC championship.

Towards the end of 2008, Calado also contested both the Formula Renault UK Winter Series and Formula Renault Portugal Winter Series, winning both.

For 2009, he will continue in the Formula Renault UK championship with Fortec Motorsport.

Jacob Stilp

The first of the two Racing Steps Foundation karters is Jacob Stilp. Despite being just 13 years of age, Stilp has already enjoyed four years of karting, the highlights of which are 3rd place in the 2007 Super 1 Cadet Championship and 3rd in the 2006 British Open Cadet Championship. As well as receiving Race Steps Foundation support, he is also the benefactor of the James Hunter Memorial Fund.

In 2008, the Racing Steps Foundation placed him in the Rotax MiniMax Super 1 National and BRDC Stars of Tomorrow Championships in which he finished 7th.

His 2009 destination is currently unannounced.

Jake Dennis

Jake Dennis (14) is the second Racing Steps Foundation karter and the final member of the 2007-2008 line up. Dennis had completed two notable years of karting prior to his involvement in the programme, which culminated in 5th position in the 2006 Super 1 Cadet championship, 4th position in 2007 whilst in the same year finishing 9th in MSA British Cadet championship.

The Racing Steps Foundation placed Dennis in the Super 1 National KF3 Championship (finishing 5th), BRDC Stars of Tomorrow KF3 championship, which he won.

In 2009, he is to continue racing in UK and European KF3 with Martin Hines’ Zip Young Guns Team.

Wayne Boyd: The one that got away

In October 2008, the Racing Steps Foundation announced that British Formula Ford champion, Wayne Boyd, was to receive a fully funded drive in the 2009 Formula Renault UK championship. However, after competing in the opening two rounds of the Formula Renault UK Winter Series in a Racing Steps Foundation car, it was announced that Boyd and the foundation were to part company.

Boyds management (headed by music impresario Chas Cole, father of British Formula Ford competitor James Cole) decided that they were not yet ready to commit to a season in Formula Renault UK, having received interest from British Formula Three teams. The Racing Steps Foundation would not negotiate on their offer and consequently the two split. Wayne Boyd is still expected to the compete in British Formula Three.

New Racing Steps Foundation addition for 2009: Jack Harvey

Filling the vacancy left by Wayne Boyd, kart racer Jack Harvey is to receive funding during 2009 in the Formula BMW Europe championship with former Formula BMW UK champions Fortec Motorsport. Harvey (15) has enjoyed an elaborate karting career, with highlights including 2008 CIK FIA Asia Pacific KF2 Champion, 2007 CIK FIA European KF3 Champion, 2007 Italian Open Masters Champion (KF3), 2007 Margutti Cup KF3 Champion.

Summary

And so, after its first full year of competition, the Racing Steps Foundation now funds five drivers, three racing cars and two who remain in karts. To this point, I’d estimate that the Racing Steps Foundation has invested somewhere in the region of £1 million during 2008, with what appears to be more than a  further £1 million pledged for 2009.

Before I say anything more, I’d like to state where I stand on these matters. I am, overwhelmingly, in favour of the London 2012 Olympic Games. I do not disagree with the funding expectations of athletes or with the investment in sporting and public infrastructure it requires. What’s more, I have little doubt that there is indeed, a correlation between a nation’s investment in sport and its Olympic medal success. After all, I know this to be true in motor sport.

The table below summarises the largest funding cuts.

Let’s take Fencing as an example.

For the Beijing 2008 Olympics, Team GB fielded three athletes: Martina Emanuel, Richard Kruse and Alex O’Connell. They were allocated £3.07 million for the games and their efforts yielded zero medals.

For London 2012, Team GB will be allocated £1.26 million, representing a 59% decrease when compared with the previous games.

Is £1.26 million too little or too much? If in London 2012, Team GB were to again field three athletes, it would represent a cost of roughly £400,000 per athlete, or £100,000 per athlete per year. Or, if they were to double the number of athletes (six), pay each athlete a salary of £20,000 per year, they would still have £780,000 to spend on coaching, promotion and facilities over the four year period.

That doesn’t seem so bad to me.

So here’s the question: how much public funding should sports really receive? Should there be a relationship between the level of funding a sport receives, its contribution to the UK economy and the level of participation both in terms of audience and competitors? If this is the case, is it right that grass-roots motor sport receives little, if any public (or lottery) funding, especially considering as an industry, it contributes an estimated £6 billion to the UK economy?

I don’t think for one moment that public money should fund the career of any young racing driver. However, shouldn’t there be more balance? If that same £1.26 million allocated to Fencing over a four year period was also allocated to motor sports – what impact could that have on grass-roots participation?