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:
3 months, 30 days, 22 hours, 35 minutes, 51 seconds ago

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.

Related posts:

1. The Donington Park Farce
2. In an alternate reality, would we still have Lewis Hamilton?
3. Where does all the money go?

Lewis first made Grand Prix history in 1998, when at just 13 years old, he became the youngest driver ever to be contracted to a Formula One team [McLaren]. This began his journey; from karting to Formula One not once did he need to consider the financial requirements of his chosen sport. My question is, in an alternate reality, without the patronage of McLaren’s Ron Dennis, would he still be in with a chance of becoming a Formula One World Champion at his first attempt?

Lewis’ rise to stardom is good for all involved in UK motor sport. It has raised its profile in the National Media and that will have a knock on effect on competitor numbers. It may even be the saviour of the struggling national kart scene as journalists inevitably ask just where the next Lewis Hamilton will come from.

Legend has it that in 1996, aged 11, a young Lewis Hamilton approached McLaren CEO Ron Dennis during the Autosport International Awards. He spoke, “I’m going to race for you one day…I’m going to race for McLaren.”. Two years later and it was official. By means of an unsolicited phone call, Dennis asked “How would like to drive for me?”. Lewis was still just 13 but suddenly his career was set.

In 2001 he took a familiar first route into single-seaters with the Formula Renault UK winter series. After finishing 5th overall, he stayed for the main championship in 2002, finishing 3rd and again in 2003 to become the convincing champion and take his first single-seater title.

In 2003 he left Britain for a place in Euroseries Formula Three, staying with Manor Motorsport, the team whom he was triumphant with in Formula Renault. He finished 5th overall, taking just one win. For 2004 he switched to crack Formula Three outfit ASM, with whom Jamie Green won in 2003. With another convincing campaign, Hamilton took the title after 15 victories and 10 pole positions.

Following such dominant success with ASM in Formula Three, it only made sense to enter GP2 with championship winning outfit ART Grand Prix. The team, formed especially for the maiden GP2 season in 2005, is a collaboration between Frederic Vasseur (principal of ASM Formule 3) and Nicolas Todt.

What happened next needs little explanation. His performance in GP2 was exceptional and with 5 wins, he won the most prestigious feeder series into Formula One at his first attempt. This was enough to bring him firmly to the attention of the big Formula One teams and indeed the international media.

And whilst everyone concentrates on his performance, what is often over looked is the significant investment made by Ron Dennis and McLaren. If this is calculated conservatively, as below, excluding domestic costs (salary, travel, transport) it would be close to the following.

A rough timeline of the costs involved in getting Lewis into Formula One.

So if the true figure is closer to £3.5 million, over a nine year period it took a continual investment of just under £400,000 annually to create the sports next superstar. Whether he could have raised this on his own is doubtful. The modest wealth of his father Anthony would surely have become restrictive and his career path distinctly different. Without the support of a Formula One team, how would this British talent ever have reached Formula One?

The same can be said about Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button, Anthony Davidson and Heikki Kovalainen, all of whom benefited from the support of a Formula One team’s driver development programme.

Yet, isn’t this the scope that the MSA British Race Elite scheme should really be addressing? Doesn’t the MSA hold any responsibility for the future development of all British talent?

The UK motor sport industry is worth in the region of £4.6 billion per annum. With the appropriate motivation is it beyond the realms of possibility for the MSA to involve industry partners to secure funding for a scholarship scheme? Other “expensive” sports such as Sailing, Tennis and Golf all have schemes and scholarships to encourage grass roots participation.

In theory, competition is meritocratic – success is achieved through the demonstration of ability. Perhaps throughout history, motor sport has failed in this respect.

Perhaps ultimately, it is without the necessary motivation. Lewis Hamiliton will become the face of British motor sport for the coming decade and after that a successor will emerge. There is no crisis amongst British racing drivers, no shortage of candidates to Formula One and because of that the industry, along with the MSA, feel no need to take on any responsibility for driver funding.

Lewis has always had a special talent, of that there is no doubt. But how far would he have got without a fully funded McLaren development programme? In the end, the overwhelming truth is that whatever support Lewis has enjoyed throughout his career, he has always made the absolute most of it.

And for that opportunity, we should all be greatful to Ron Dennis.

Related posts:

1. Does F1 really need more young drivers?
2. Racing Steps Foundation: 2008 season review
3. Where does all the money go?

This was a road course. I hear you sigh. This wasn’t NASCAR’s normal oval race and is, like Montoya, the future of the series. NASCAR is expanding into South America, a growing market which it is largely yet to explore. With the future of NASCAR in Mexico uncertain and a 2008 deal not yet confirmed, this was as much NASCAR’s chance as it was Montoya’s and amazingly, it looks like everyone benefits. Montoya showed himself to be a league above the rest and lived up to expectation. In doing so, he upholds the dignity and stature of European competition (including Formula One) and it in turn helps every European racing driver wanting to drive in the States. Crucially, it is perfect for NASCAR. Montoya’s win is the ultimate prize in negotiating next season and will surely win over much needed fans. But let us get back on topic. Why is Montoya a hero?

There was a time when racing drivers used to race everything and anything they could. Jim Clark, Formula One World Champion in 1963 and 1965 was also the 1964 British Touring Car Champion. He won the Indianapolis 500 in 1965 and finished third at the 1960 24 Hours of Le Mans. In 1966 Clark entered the RAC Rally of Great Britain and had he not have crashed during he final stages, very likely would have won. He was also no stranger to NASCAR and raced a Ford Galaxie for the Holman Moody team. He was an all rounder and for the most part, just loved to race.

Mario Andretti was Formula One World Champion in 1978. Previously, in 1967, Andretti won NASCAR’s most prestigious race, the Daytona 500. In 1969 he won the IndyCar championship, the Indianapolis 500 and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, the ferocious race to the summit of Pikes Peak, Colorado which climbs some 1439 metres on dirt and gravel. In 1974 he won the USAC dirt track series in addition to winning the Formula 5000 championship for the second time in a row. After Formula One, he won the IndyCar series for a fourth time in 1984. Just like Clark, he will be remembered as a legendary all rounder and as someone who simply loved to race.

So how about Montoya? After a successful career of karting he won the 1992 Colombian Formula Renault championship. The following year he also won the Colombian GTI National Championship Tournament before in 1994 returning to karts to win the Sudan 125 championship. In 1995 he came to England, finishing third in Formula Vauxhall with Paul Stewart Racing. For 1996 he remained in England for the British Formula Three championship and eventually finished third after two wins with the Fortec Motorsport. His single-seater career came to prominence when in 1997 he competed in the International Formula 3000 championship with RSM Marko. He finished second in the championship with three wins and remained in the series for a second year. After switching to the experienced Super Nova team, he dominated the series and won in 1998.

With no options available to him in Formula One the following year, Montoya returned to the America’s to race in the-then popular CART series, now known as the Champ Car World Series. He once again showed immense raw speed and dominated the championship to win overall in his rookie year with seven wins and seven poles. Remaining in CART for 2000, his Ganassi team switched to the newer Lola chassis and Toyota engine. This, regrettably, was a mistake and overall it was never competitive. However, Montoya salvaged his dignity from the otherwise least successful season of his career and won the prestigious Indianapolis 500. That weekend, BMW Williams announced a two year deal for him enter Formula One in 2001.

During his time in Formula One, Montoya achieved seven Grand Prix victories and finished third in the championship on two separate occasions. Whilst never managing to win the World Championship, some consolation can be found in his 2003 victory at Monaco which made him only the second person in history to win both the Indianapolis 500 and Monaco Grand Prix.

In 2006, after another difficult year with McLaren, his announcement, with immediate effect, to switch to NASCAR was a real shock. Not only had he turned his back on Formula One (it is usually the opposite), he had made a real statement to the world of motor sport. NASCAR is the place to be. Of course there were sceptics and the risk to his career enormous. But although unusually quiet, Montoya was confident.

Watch Montoya’s first NASCAR win

NASCAR is unique in as much as the most important race of the year also happens to be the first. After making an impression during qualifying, he never had any luck. Juan Pablo led 18-laps of his qualification race before a broken wheel hub caused him to retire and as a consequence, he would start his first Daytona 500 last. His misfortune continued and gearbox problems left him with only fourth gear during the race and little hope of making history with a victory in his first Nextel Cup start

If he does manage to win the Daytona 500, and for the record I think he will, he will become the first person in history to win the Monaco Grand Prix, Indianapolis 500 and Daytona. Following that, all he would need is a win at Le Mans. Two months ago, Montoya (together with Scott Pruett and Salvador Duran) won the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona, North America’s premier sports car endurance race. He almost certainly has the experience, all he needs is the opportunity and he will accomplish what is truly remarkable.

The point is, despite being just 31 years old, in my opinion, Juan Pablo Montoya is already one of the great all rounders the sport has ever seen. His enthusiasm to race is an inspiration and a welcome break from the sometimes robotic attitude of the modern Formula One driver . He was never really comfortable in a modern Formula One car and perhaps he was born in the wrong era. It did, however, make the world take him seriously and his participation was entirely necessary. Juan Pablo Montoya is a rare hero in today’s generation.

Related posts:

1. Where does all the money go?
2. A1GP: The Curse of a New Car
3. British Formula Ford Sampler Day (Video)

His comments are a question of interpretation. If by young drivers he actually means new drivers, then I agree, that is exactly what the sport needs.

When you think about it, Surtees has actually highlighted two separate problems. First, how does a young driver get to Formula One in the first place? I applaud him for raising the question and to an extent, his contribution is keeping Robbie Kerr in A1 Team Great Britain. I think that I covered the problems associated with this reasonably well previously (Where does all the money go?) and so I wont do so again. However, the second question Surtees has unknowingly raised, and the topic of this article is: how can we make progression to Formula One sustainable for the future? To answer that, let us look at what exactly is the problem.

F1 drivers are around for too long. When the 2007 World Championship begins in Melbourne next month, six drivers will continue long past their 10th season in Formula One. At the same time, the youngest World Champion in history, Fernando Alonso, enters his sixth season and both Jenson Button and Nick Heidfeld are to begin their seventh. What will surely please Surtees is the sight of four debutees: Lewis Hamilton (22), Heikki Kovalinen (26), Robert Kubica (22) and Adrian Sutil (24).

When Fernando Alonso made his F1 debut, he was 20 years old. Jenson Button and Kimi Rƒ¤ikkƒ¶nen were both 21. Sebastian Vettel, who is yet to make his race debut has already become the youngest driver ever to take part in a Grand Prix meeting aged just 19 years and 53 days. When you consider that, it’s hard to conclude that we need more young drivers in Formula One.

The last time Formula One suffered a fatality was the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. During that weekend, Austrian Roland Ratzenberger and three-times World Champion Aryton Senna were both killed in separate accidents. Since then, almost 13 years have passed and an increased emphasis on driver safety has seen significantly fewer injuries than ever before.

Yet for all its merits, the inadvertent consequence is that Formula One has lost an unpleasant contributor to its driver turnover.

When Michael Schumacher retired he was 38 years old. Mika Hƒ¤kkinen retired when he was 33. Great Britain’s last World Champion, Damon Hill, hung up his overalls at 39. Should David Coulthard retire at the end of 2007, he will have spent 13 of his 37 years racing in Formula One. The point here is: without reason, drivers don’t necessarily need to retire until well into their 30s.

In 2006, Formula One had 11 teams each providing two cars. 12 of the 22 seats were occupied by career drivers, that is, drivers which have had more than two full seasons of racing and who are contractually secure. Other drivers realistically faced little threat but did not satisfy this criteria.

The point is, in my opinion, by introducing more young drivers into Formula One it will in fact reduce the number of opportunities for future talent. If our goal is to ultimately see a greater number of drivers (or talent) reach the pinnacle of the sport we should either be increasing driver turn-over or reducing costs to allow more teams. Otherwise, the two are mutually exclusive.

By increasing the number of drivers of the age of Hamilton, Vettal or even Alonso (in 2001 he was just 19), it is only limiting the number of serious opportunities for new drivers in the future through occupying the limited number of seats for longer.

Correspondingly, by reducing the entry age into Formula One, it is also accelerating the financial prerequisites for national competition. If a driver makes his F1 debut aged 20 or 21, an ideal (and mostly typical) career path suggests at least one year of GP2 (aged 19), probably two years of Formula Three (aged 18 and 17), two years of Formula Renault or similar (aged 17 and 16) and largely, a childhood of karting. Furthermore, encouragement of younger drivers in Formula One, leads to drivers starting earlier and to compete in such highly expensive series at such young ages requires either the support of a generous patron or the benefit of a particularly wealthy upbringing.

In the end, all that happens is that those who needed opportunity, are still without, but instead this time for longer. What we really need is for motor sport to cease its obsession with adolescence and slow down. There is nothing wrong with entering Formula One at 25 or 26. In actual fact, it’s probably better for the sport.

Related posts:

1. In an alternate reality, would we still have Lewis Hamilton?
2. Where does all the money go?
3. The Racing Steps Foundation… almost.

It is first necessary to outline the criteria for the comparisons. Only nations which have scored a World Championship point are eligible. This means wins and podiums can be taken into account but I have explicitly not looked for nations which may have held pole positions or achieved fastest laps yet failed to score any points. This is for practicality’s sake.

I also recognise that the system of awarding points has changed many times over the history of Formula One. Nevertheless, statistics are statistics and considering the majority of points in this era have been scored by just one man (Michael Schumacher, Germany) and that points is just one comparisons, it should even itself out.

So let us get started. This first table shows the total number of World Championship’s won by each nation.

	Nation	World Championships
	Great Britain	11
	Brazil	9
	Germany	7
	Argentina	5
	Austria	4
	Austrailia	4
	France	4
	Finland	3
	Italy	3
	Spain	2
	USA	2
	Canada	1
	New Zealand	1
	South Africa	1

That’s all well and good, but it’s hardly conclusive. Next, we will look at the total number of World Championship points scored by each nation.

	Nation	Total Points
	Great Britain	3818.4
	France	2128.9
	Brazil	2056.5
	Germany	2004
	Italy	1412.5
	Finland	929.5
	Austria	911.5
	USA	640
	Argentina	542.5
	Australia	521
	New Zealand	519.5
	Spain	381
	Canada	335
	Belguim	313
	Columbia	307
	Sweden	294
	Switzerland	277
	South Africa	246
	Mexico	143.2

This provides a little more weight. However, there is the aforementioned problem – over the years the Formula One points system has changed and so it favors drivers in the modern era. Also, points are achieved through consistency and it follows that we look at outright wins.

	Nation	Wins
	Great Britain	186
	Germany	103
	Brazil	90
	France	77
	Austria	41
	Italy	37
	Argentina	36
	Finland	34
	Australia	26
	USA	22
	Canada	17
	Spain	15
	New Zealand	12
	Belguim	11
	South Africa	10
	Sweden	10
	Columbia	7
	Switzerland	7
	Mexico	4

Likewise, a win doesn’t necessarily imply outright speed. The following shows the total number of pole positions.

	Nation	Pole Positions
	Great Britain	168
	Brazil	112
	Germany	77
	France	69
	Austria	46
	Finland	43
	Italy	40
	Argentina	31
	USA	28
	Australia	17
	Canada	15
	Spain	15
	Belguim	14
	Sweden	14
	Columbia	12
	Switzerland	7
	New Zealand	6
	Mexico	3
	South Africa	3

Staying on the subject of outright speed, this shows the total number of fastest laps.

	Nation	Fastest Laps
	Great Britain	170
	Germany	92
	France	80
	Brazil	70
	Austria	48
	Finland	47
	Italy	41
	Argentina	28
	Australia	24
	USA	24
	Switzerland	18
	Canada	17
	Belguim	15
	New Zealand	13
	Columbia	12
	Sweden	9
	Spain	8
	Mexico	5
	South Africa	5

And finally, as a more general measure of success, let us compare the total number of podiums achieved.

	Nation	Podiums
	Great Britain	452
	France	279
	Brazil	249
	Germany	218
	Italy	151
	Austria	115
	Finland	104
	USA	85
	Argentina	80
	New Zealand	71
	Australia	56
	Belguim	40
	Sweden	38
	Spain	37
	Canada	36
	Switzerland	34
	South Africa	33
	Columbia	30
	Mexico	22

Now, to bring some kind of conclusion and amalgamate all of the separate comparisons into one I have weighted each nations position in each of the above tables by awarding a score from 19 to 1 (there are 19 points scoring nations). This, therefore, gives us the final positions.

		Nation
1.		Great Britain
2.		Brazil
3.		Germany
4.		France
5.		Austria
6.		Italy
7.		Argentina
8.		Finland
9.		USA
10.		Australia
11.		Canada
12.		Spain
13.		New Zealand
14.		Belgium
15.		Sweden
16.		Switzerland
17.		Columbia
18.		South Africa
19.		Mexico

So there you have it – Rule Britannia! In each comparison made, statistically, Great Britain has been most successful. It is then followed closely by Brazil, Germany and France. Some nations, such as Germany, are largely being carried by the statistics of one driver (Schumacher). Some, like Argentina, haven’t won a World Championship since 1957 (Fangio) and have only ever had two Grand Prix participants (Fangio and Reutemann). Others, Great Britain, for example, have an even distribution amongst eight world champions and 15 points scoring drivers.

Isn’t it interesting that people always refer to Scandinavians or South Americans as being the most naturally gifted drivers when statistically they are eclipsed by the British? Why is it so often overlooked?

Also worth noting is that no Asian or Middle Eastern nation has ever scored a World Championship point. I anticipate that this will change during the next decade.

And so to conclude, I thought I would preempt the criticisms that I expect. Yes, this isn’t perfect but it does illustrate some interesting points. Motorsport is unfair and especially in Formula One, drivers never have the opportunity to compete in equal equipment. Does that make drawing comparisons irrelevant? Probably not, but it does demonstrate the need for A1GP to control the technology in its own series.

You could also argue that the success of a nation’s motorsport should include construction too. Perhaps, but overall, I would not expect the outcome to be significantly different.

And what about GNP? Isn’t Great Britain’s dominance proportional to the socio-economic opportunities within our country and just another example of the unfortunate economics of motor sport? Again, perhaps. However, the same applies to the motorsport heritage in smaller nations – Brazil or Argentina, for example. Senna, Piquet and Barrichello were all born into large amounts of money.

In some ways I wish the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport was based on Formula One. That way, at least we would have won something.…

If you would like to validate my statistics, feel free. I have provided the script used to generate them here.

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2. Formula Three’s biggest threat
3. How much travelling is in your motorsport season?