Quote:
Originally Posted by kotkot
Based on 2015, a year in entry-level racing is not necessarily enough to do well in FIA F3. Stroll struggled so badly in the first half of the season he is still labelled as a crash kid no matter how much he matured. Maini and Boccolacci struggled just as much as karting graduates Ilott or Lorandi but there should be no doubt they are a lot better than how they did.
So, based on that, what should last year's top F4 drivers do? Spending another year in a Formula-4 series sounds like a waste but if they move to FIA F3, they have to prepare for their reputation to take a hit. No wonder most of this year's F4 graduates are connected to Red Bull one way or another (Kari, Beckmann, Newey). This is where championships like BRDC F4 or Eurocup come into the picture since you can spend a year there, get used to more power and still deliver eye-catching results. That way you can avoid bad results which might drive the sponsors away. It's all about money...
Bottom line is, if two championships have cars with different power they will never fully overlap even if they both count as stepping stones to F3.
|
First of all, my point was not that people shouldn't go to BRDC f4. I can understand in the current ladder system that a driver with 1 year experience in MSA (&some succes) now moves ''up'' to BRDC and also understand that it's probably to early to move to F3. So i do not disagree with you on that.
However, my point was that looking at the junior ladder imo there is no need for a class between F4 and F3, and i feel in the long run MSA and BRDC will only hurt each other.
If we look at a bit longer period then just 2015, and take a look at the past decades you'll see that:
- A talent with no experience can jump straight into a ~100-150 hp car.
- most talented drivers need 2 years in an entry level class before they go to F3.
- 2 years in a 100-150 hp car is enough to train talents for F3. I mean for decades drivers went from a ~110 hp formula ford into F3, with success.
That all points at a lack off a need for a class between entry level and f3. 2 years in MSA should be more then enough for a talent to jump into F3. BRDC is a more powerfull car so yes that would indeed be helpfull in training, however in the long term imo the negative effects on grid sizes and talent spread over 2 classes outweights the step up in power.
This isn't an issue yet (with both classes probably ending up with grids in the 20s), however once a british f3 like championship returns imo it's just a matter of time before one of the 2 championships will die.